The nitrofurans are a group of antibiotic drugs which were banned from use in food animal production in the European Union in the mid 1990s because of concerns about their carcinogenicity and mutagenicity (Commission Regulation 1442/95). The four major nitrofurans are furazolidone, furaltadone, nitrofurantoin and nitrofurazone. Nitrofurans had been widely and effectively used for the prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal infections caused by Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Mycoplasma spp., Coccidia spp., coliforms and some other protozoa, and as growth promoters in livestock.
Furazolidone, in particular, was cheap, effective and, along with other nitrofurans, is still manufactured and used elsewhere in the world. One survey reported that tissue-bound residues of furazolidone could be detected in 17% of pig kidneys tested. Furthermore, prior to the launch of FoodBRAND, the discovery of:(a) a nitrofuran preparation intended for illegal use in animal production, and (b) tissue-bound residues of furazolidone in rabbit collected as part of the National Surveillance Scheme in one EU Member State, suggested that European Consumers may be exposed to these residues in their diets. However, monitoring compliance with the ban by measuring residues of the parent drugs in tissue is of limited value because residues disappear rapidly from tissues, within a few hours of treatment. In contrast the tissue-bound metabolite AOZ (3-amino-2-oxazolidinone) may be detected in tissue for at least six weeks - long after its parent compound furazolidone has been metabolised. This was the detection strategy adopted by the FoodBRAND team.
