I visited camel pastoralists in the Somali Region of Ethiopia (SRE), mainly Jigjiga and found very interesting and new facts about camels and pastoralism.
A very amazing piece of information about the camel population in the region is that there are 6.5 million camels in SRE. Please tell me your views in this regard. The total camel population in Ethiopia is more than 8 million. (as per oral information provided by Pastoral Bureau)
The other fact I found personally, is the taste of the milk of the Hoor or Hur camel breed in the the region. It was very strange for me as I have visited many different camel herding communities globally and tasted the milk of many camel types (Dromedary and Bactrian) but never found the taste like it was in the region. I drank camel milk in Jigjiga, and believe me the taste was like the taste of honey. The milk was acquired from the naturally grazing camels. There is a wide floral diversity and the camels consume it regularly while grazing/browsing in the rangelands.
When I shared this information in the Camel4Life International (camel advocacy forum) WhatsApp group, many cameleers from different parts of the world responded with their experience of the camel milk taste. https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/health/al-ain-doctor-sees-potential-in-camels-beyond-their-milk-1.51957
I can easily imagine! Our milk also can be very sweet (Ilse Kohler Rollefson, a German camel lover residing in Rajasthan with the camel herds). Dr Piers (camel owner and PhD in camel production from Kenya) responded as;
“My milk in Kenya does too, almost like coconut milk sweet. I am sure that the sweet flavour is the natural flavour of all free-ranging camels that have the liberty to choose what and how much they want to eat. Depending on the natural plants and ecology it can be salty, or sometimes very bitter if they eat flowering Vernonia shrubs for example. It’s like natural honey from bees, the flavour depends on the plants. Someone should open a shop selling all the different flavours of natural camel milk over the different seasons globally.
For further good reading about the incredible camels and my camel advocacy work, CLICK THE LINKS
- https://camel4all.info/index.php/2020/06/06/camel-is-a-unique-livestock/
- https://arkbiodiv.com/dr-abdul-raziq-kakar/
- What is World Camel Day?
- Ecological Camel Farming – Supporting Aravana Camel Breeders in Turkmen Region of Iran
5 replies on “Camel Milk or Honey?”
Thank you very much for your visit Dr.Razik.As he said he drunk the milk of Hur camel breed.In Somali region there are different breeds of milk type and beef type. AS i am a breeder and worked my phd on genetic diversity of Ethiopian and Middle east camel population, we have to promot this specialized breeds in Ethiopia.
Thanks for the feedback! It is really very impressive information.
Yes, there are some more breeds (almost 8 breeds) of Somali camel pastoralists in the region.
I would love it if someone shared further details about each breed, I shall post on the website camel4all.info
Please share this article in your circles so more people can read it.
Best regards
Hi All;
Thank you Dr. Kakar for sharing your experience on milk tasting. In fact, the fresh camel’s milk (dromedary pasteurized and refrigerated) normally is sweet in taste. That is because of the milk sugar/carbohydrate – lactose. It would be interesting if % lactose and total solids are determined in representative samples of camel’s milk from Jigjiga region you mentioned. Normally, 5% lactose is present in camel’s milk (dromedary). Of course, feeding regime, season of the year, animal health, environmental aspects are among the factors affecting quality and taste of milk.
Besr regards.
Thanks very much for your feedback. Yes, for sure there is high lactose contents, giving a sweeter taste to the milk. I think the taste is not only generated by lactose but the bioactive molecules, certains vitamisn, lactose, fat & it composition (fatty acids) altogether give taste and flavor to the milk. Yes we need a comprehensive and complete analysis of the camel milk in the region.
Best regards
[…] As for the flavor, unlike in cows, it is 100% dependent on what camels are eating. We can tell the difference between milk from camels feeding on dunes or on sebkhas (salty flats) near the sea, just a mile apart. With salty browsing, the milk leaves a pleasant salty taste on one’s lips, but from euphorbias on the dunes, it is much sweeter. When camels eat particular trees like Acacia (locally called Askaf) herders say the milk is incredibly healthy, and they love the taste, but in fact, it is a bit bitter and (to me) slightly unpleasant but the shrub grows in a particular environment and may well be as healthy as they say. Camel lactose is different from cow’s, having a different molecular structure which doesn’t cause any lactose intolerance issue. I found the strange fact that the camel milk was sweeter like honey. Camel Milk or Honey? […]