Transhumance: What, How, Why?

Transhumance is the movement of livestock (goats, cows, sheep) and people to areas of higher altitude. It is a traditional dairying practice performed in many countries in Europe. The plants and flowers at these higher altitudes revel in stronger sunshine, and are less disturbed by human interference, so that in these areas the biologically diversity is the most broad (think conservation area).

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Every Spring, families drive their herd (or a village's herds) up to a mountain chalet and dairy where they live, milk and make cheese for the Summer. Sometimes, in mid-summer, once the snow has cleared they are even able to head up to an even higher meadow, to get that bit closer to the sun.

Why does this matter? Milk produced by the livestock is directly effected by the surrounding environment. The milk, and therefore the cheese, is a reservoir for anything that they eat. Milk is composed of water, fats, lactose, proteins, minerals and other 'organic compounds'. These organics can be both natural (such b-carotene and terpenes from grasses & flowers), or human-derived such as toxins and fertiliser byproducts. The more of the former category, and the less of them latter category, the better for the cheese and our health. The natural organic compounds will help to create flavours and aromas which are unique to the Alp. With little human interference in this isolated environment, there should be less toxins and other nasty compounds.

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The purity and diversity (both floral and microbial), of the environment creates cheese (and other dairy products) with rich, delicious, complex flavours, which are beneficial to our health. A diverse microbial profile from these cheeses, transfers itself to our guts, and has been shown to be medically beneficial for humans reducing allergies and asthma, as well as even improving responses to certain anti-cancer therapies [read more in our blog!]