The start of a lasting friendship.
It is no secret: at COMED, we stand for sustainability. Both in our products and our COMED Method as in our vision for the success of pigeon racing worldwide. That is precisely why we have had several critical figures to test and strengthen our vision immediately since the very beginning.
Jean-Louis Jorissen speaks: "I have known Michel Vanlint for a very long time. He has a sharp sense of observation, and I shared the quest for the ideal care of pigeons. The Lost Son was very well informed about the medicines and the natural remedies, making our conversations extraordinary fascinating. At that time, antibiotics were still prevalent, despite the resistance problem, against which I always warned and which intrigued him, not to say without which pigeon racing seemed impossible. As a pharmacist and dealer in antibiotics, I had – contrary to Michel and many others - made my choice for a long time and argued against their use in the sport in general and especially against blind cures. On many occasions, I was scornfully rebuked in medical circles with the remark, "what you are proposing is not feasible."
Twelve years ago, Michel Vanlint visited Jean-Louis, accompanied by a then-unknown fancier: Willem De Bruijn. Willem was a fresh and open personality, and his scientific insights immediately made him a fascinating visitor. It was an acquaintance between two men, both born in 1949 and who, as teenagers, experienced "the Golden Sixties" with the Beatles and the Rolling stones, as well as the great master Bob Dylan. Bob Dylan released in 1964 "Times They are Changing" after putting a final hold on the Vietnam War with some sentences in "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" Far too late, but more than right, he recently won the Nobel Prize for Literature. In May 1968, when the youth detached themselves from the establishment, they ended up at university together.
Jean-Louis Jorissen: "Willem was very interested in a new approach, and after our first meeting about the antibiotic-free approach, he was totally on board. I was looking for this conversation for a long time; he told me gratefully a few days later. Many more conversations followed. As a dentist, Willem was completely fed up with antibiotics and also felt that it was not possible that whoever had the most powerful antibiotics with the broadest spectrum would achieve the best results. There was a radical change of direction and no turning back. Michel found it harder to let go of his tried and tested medical system with which he had been at the top for years. I would nevertheless like to take a look at his impressive Palmares."
"Our paths then sort of parted, although with mutual respect's system. Michel meanwhile concluded his rich competition career but remained a passionate lover of the sport. The conversations had lingered, and he has renewed his interest in the COMED Method
"I may conclude that this first visit by Michel Vanlint and Willem De Bruijn, which was historic for me, has certainly placed a rock in our river, which has changed its course considerably."