Sixteen of the world’s largest asset managers have been criticised for voting against a resolution to make McDonalds and major US meat supplier Hormel Foods phase out their use of antibiotics in meat production.

Researchers at ShareAction, which campaigns for responsible investment, found investors overwhelmingly opposed three shareholder resolutions to phase out the use of medically important antibiotics in meat production in 2023.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that mass antibiotic use in human and animal medicine threatens to create a crisis in antimicrobial resistance.

Two resolutions at McDonalds on complying with WHO guidelines and to phase out the use of antibiotics in meat production were rejected by 81% and 83% of the votes at shareholder meetings last year.

As the World Health Organisation has warned, the use of antibiotics in the food chain poses a serious risk to human health

A resolution at Hormel Foods to phase out the use of antibiotics was also voted down by 94%.

Among those who opposed the resolutions were BlackRock, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, JP Morgan Investment Management and Morgan Stanley Asset Management.

ShareAction said asset managers across the board are not taking antimicrobial resistance seriously and are doing nothing to prevent what has the potential to be one of the biggest public health crises of the future.

Felix Nagrawala, research manager at the organisation, said: “As the World Health Organisation has warned, the use of antibiotics in the food chain poses a serious risk to human health.

“Yet the world’s biggest asset managers are not supporting key resolutions that would phase out their use at some of the world’s biggest food suppliers.

“We are calling for managers to take their impact on people and planet as seriously as financial returns and prevent plunging us back into the medical Dark Ages.”

In the company’s proxy statement, McDonalds said: “We are working towards the responsible use of antibiotics in our supply chain, including reducing their use and not permitting routine use of medically important antibiotics in food animal production.

“Our Vision for Antimicrobial Stewardship outlines our approach to responsible antibiotic use, as defined by the World Health Organisation, within our supply chain.

“Our focus is on refining antibiotic selection and administration, reducing non-therapeutic antibiotic use and, when possible, replacing antibiotics with long-term solutions to prevent disease and protect animal health and welfare.”

PA contacted Hormel Foods, BlackRock, Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Morgan Stanley Asset Management for comment.

JP Morgan Investment Management declined to comment.