🦙 Llama

The llama is a pack animal of the Andes, domesticated several thousand years ago. It is raised for carrying loads, wool and meat; llamas are hardly used for dairy, and the milk usually goes to the young.

Llama milk has been little studied. Available data suggest it has more lactose and less fat than cow’s milk, although results from different studies vary noticeably. There are reports of a salty, long-keeping cheese made from llama milk in the Andes, but there is little technical information about it.

Knowing the composition of llama milk matters mainly to veterinarians: to raise an orphaned baby, they choose a substitute close in composition to the mother’s milk. Goat’s milk or milk replacers for calves and lambs are usually used, but they do not always suit the young of South American camelids.