🦌 Reindeer

Reindeer is a large deer of the far north, tamed and herded by people. The reindeer gives one of the richest milks among domestic animals: usually 10–20% fat and 7–13% protein, with little lactose. Its thickness is compared to cream. The yield is small — from 100 to 750 grams a day, depending on the study — and the female is milked by hand during the short summer season while her calf is nearby.

Milking reindeer was a tradition above all among the Sámi of northern Europe: until the 20th century reindeer milk and cheese were a notable part of their diet. The milk was thickened, made into cheese and stored for winter. Some reindeer herders in Siberia also milked their does, but for many tundra peoples the reindeer served mainly for transport and as a source of meat and hides.

In the 20th century, as reindeer herding became larger in scale and more mobile, milking among the Sámi almost stopped. Today reindeer milk and cheese are rare and produced in small quantities.