DEAR SIR: In relation to your article published on 6 August 2020, titled “Alternative mastitis treatments: are they effective?” by Aidan Brennan, we reserve the right to reply.

AHV International is a Dutch company and has independent, European peer reviewed research from Dutch agricultural institutions, French milk processors and now from the Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) which compares our solutions to traditional methods, of which the results will be officially published in September 2020.

Our products are backed by the widely recognised science of quorum sensing (QS) which, if researched, is an increasingly effective way of dealing with pathogens, mainly bacteria, protozoa and fungi. For more information on QS, please visit our website at www.ahvint.com. Your article compares the cost of AHV products treating a clinical case of mastitis with a swollen udder (your words) to the cost of antibiotics.

For clarity, AHV does not use Allicin as an ingredient in its products

Firstly, the stated advice is to treat this case by administering three tubes, with a milk withdrawal time of 3.5-4 days. This is wrong as it is 3.5-4 days milk withdrawal after the last treatment. Secondly, if you really want to use antibiotics this is very wrong advice as every veterinarian knows, if you want to use antibiotics, you also need to inject the cow for at least three days. Milk withdrawal will be 8-10 days. The average cost of antibiotic treatment is €130 and that is common knowledge. Thirdly, as the example stated a swollen udder, there is no mention of using an anti-inflammatory and no cost attached to it. This is poor advice to any farmer as it is the swelling/immune reaction that risks udder damage or loss of the quarter.

For clarity, AHV does not use Allicin as an ingredient in its products. It is AHV’s decision not to disclose its active ingredients, as this is commercially sensitive. Additionally, AHV products are not an alternative for antibiotics because the mechanism of action is completely different as we assist the cow’s own immune system to fight the health challenges (QS). AHV will host a seminar in September, at which we will release the independent WIT research and will have guest speakers including Prof Fink Gremmels, a world leading professor on antimicrobial resistance and an innovative researcher on QS.