The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved a vaccine intended to immunize cattle against the potentially deadly E. coli O157:H7 bacteria. The vaccine, made by Epitopix LLC of Minnesota, prevents E. coli from absorbing iron while in the digestive systems of cows. Iron is a necessary nutrient for E. coli, so preventing iron absorption prevents E. coli growth.

A test of this vaccine on a cattle feedlot conducted by Texas A&M University researchers showed an 85% reduction in E. coli O157:H7 being shed by cows, and that among the cows that continued shedding E. coli, there was a 98% decrease in cells being shed.

Now, what’s interesting to me is that the meat producers who are interested in this vaccine do not want to be named, for fear of associating their brands with E. coli. To me, this represents a great marketing opportunity - a meat producer could send out a press release talking about how their meat is safer than the meat from other companies.

On the other hand, I feel that this overabundance of caution is partly due to lack of knowledge in the general population about E. coli - especially about the fact that cows carry E. coli naturally, so they’re always in cattle farms whether the meat producers want to admit it or not. In other words, people have to understand that E. coli is a natural part of the cattle farm ecosystem. A vaccine like this is meant to address this fact, and to prevent injury and death because of it.

Now, I’m predicting opposition to this vaccine, on the grounds that a new tool to prevent  E. coli O157:H7 spread may encourage some meat producers to continue untenable conditions for cattle in feedlots instead of changing them. The first thing I thought of, honestly, was people opposing this vaccine on the same grounds they oppose irradiation - that all it does is to “sanitize the poop”, so to speak, leaving it in the beef for us to eat.

To me, these are not the reasons I’d be concerned about the vaccine. Feedlot conditions should be controlled not by discouraging perfectly useful tools like this vaccine from being used, but by making the meat producers change their feedlot practices, either by regulation or simply by not buying from those producers.

In general, I think the development of this vaccine is a step forward in the protection of our beef supply. A word of caution, though:  just as bacteria can develop antibiotic resistance, they can develop resistance to a vaccine as well. I’d like to know what Epitopix LLC is doing to address this phenomenon.

Source: AP: USDA approves shot for cows aimed at E. coli