For many years, antibiotics have been used for the treatment of infectious diseases such as mastitis in cows. Over the last few years there has been an increase in demand for higher productivity from individual cows, often resulting in more infections and subsequently an increased use of antibiotic treatments.

Under normal circumstances, treated cows must be isolated for a certain period before being milked. The normal quarantine period is 4-5 days but this may vary according to the type of antibiotic used and the applied dosage. If this quarantine period is not adhered to, farmers run a high risk of the antibiotic residue passing into the milk. Penalties for positive antibiotic residues are often severe.

Antibiotic residues also pose a major problem to the dairy industry as they can inhibit starter cultures in yoghurt and cheese making. This could result in major losses to the factory concerned.

More importantly, and indeed more severe, are the consequences that affect human health. Residues can cause antibiotic resistance, allergy and hypersensitivity in many human beings.

Chr. Hansen offers a complete range of antibiotic test kits to prevent the negative effects of antibiotic residues and enhance process control in the dairy industry.