CHICAGO, Ill. (Reuters) — Merck & Co. is funding the testing of lower dosages of its controversial cattle growth drug Zilmax.
Livestock experts say the initiative is crucial if the company is to resume sales of the product to the U.S. beef industry.
It’s been nearly 18 months since Merck pulled the drug from the U.S. and Canadian markets after videos and photographs surfaced showing Zilmax-fed cattle turning up in a distressed state, either lame or with hooves missing at slaughterhouses.
Scientists at Texas Tech University are now testing beef carcasses taken from cattle fed different concentrations of Zilmax.
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The Merck-funded field study and lab work are designed to test Zilmax at its currently approved dosage of 6.8 grams per ton of feed for a 20-day period before to slaughter, as well as dosages at 60 and 80 percent of that level, according to the title of the study.
Merck awarded $1.85 million to the Texas Tech team in October to conduct the research, which was mentioned at the time in a university newsletter that received little attention outside of the school.
The research is ongoing and the specific time frame of the study is not clear.
“This study is an example of the company’s ongoing research efforts to provide additional data on the use of Zilmax,” the company said in a statement.
Merck, which says it still sells Zilmax in Mexico and South Africa, declined to comment on why it was testing these particular levels or whether it was collecting data to submit to the Food and Drug Administration.
The company also declined to say how many cattle are being fed Zilmax as part of the tests, or where the animals are being raised or slaughtered.
An FDA spokesperson declined to comment on the study, citing confidentiality regarding drug applications.
Texas Tech did not respond to requests for comment.
In November, federal regulators approved changes proposed by the company in the way the drug is administered. The company has also been working with cattle feedlot operators on how best to administer the drug.
“It looks to me like they’re doing studies to determine if the lower dosages are efficacious in improving feed efficiency, growth rate and carcass leanness,” said David Anderson, former head of hog research at Elanco Animal Health.
