Inspired at Sonam Wangchuk’s school, Ladakh’s Thenlay Nurboo returned to yak herding — now his churpi has won gold

Churpi made with yak milk is a tradition of Ladakh, he noted, adding, “it (churpi) has always been made here, people have always eaten it here, but it has never been exported. No one had tested it outside of Ladakh, no one had tried to take it further.”

The churpi, he says, carries the story of Changthang — the high-altitude plateau of eastern Ladakh where communities like his — he belongs to Changpa community, high-altitude pastoralists who have herded yaks and goats for centuries — have always lived.

The win, he is quick to say, is not his alone. It belongs to the tradition, and to the people who have kept it alive. “It doesn’t mean that I made something new and got an award. This has been made for years. I just came in the middle and worked as a connector, from here to Brazil, working with the department, the NDDB and the UT Administration to take it forward.” He thanked the NDDB, the Department of Animal Husbandry and the Ladakh UT Administration specifically for making the journey possible. “Whatever I have achieved, it is with everyone’s blessings.”

Churpi is not your regular cheese

Nurboo, who runs Nomadic Farm, which his parents started over 30 years ago, insists that the method of making churpi is completely different from any other cheese, and it begins with no rennet and no culture.

“We heat the milk and set the curd. After five to six hours, when the curd sets naturally, we put it in a churning machine and churn it thoroughly. Butter and buttermilk are separated. The butter goes towards ghee or other butter products. We then heat the buttermilk — after heating, the liquid and solids separate. We drain the solids through a sieve for three to four hours until the whey is fully drained. Then we squeeze the solid from in-between in our fingers, giving it a distinct shape and dry it naturally for two to three days,” he explained. In Ladakh, where humidity is very low, drying is easy. “If it rains or the weather is bad, it can take four days to a week. Otherwise, two to three days is enough.”

The taste is firm and slightly sour. “It is not sweet. You cannot eat it as it is.” In Ladakh, churpi finds its way into recipes, most commonly being thukpa, the region’s soupy noodle dish, where larger pieces are crumbled between the fingers and added to the broth. There is also a quick soup made from barley flour, Ladakhi churpi, salted tea and yak butter, mixed together and drunk in two minutes. “It gives instant energy, which is very useful when you are working outdoors.”

Churpi exists in other parts of the subcontinent — there is a GI-tagged churpi from Arunachal Pradesh, and versions are made across parts of northeastern India, Bhutan, Tibet and Nepal. But Nurboo is clear that Ladakhi churpi is an entirely different product. “The other varieties are square in shape and used like an energy candy, something you put in your mouth one by one while trekking or hiking. Ladakhi churpi is not like that. It is used in cooking. You can add it to pizza, noodles, soup. The shape, the design, the usage, everything is different. I have tried the Arunachal churpi and it is very good, but it is a different product entirely.”

How he got here

Nurboo studied until the 10th grade in Ladakh, then trained in sustainable organic farming at SECMOL, the alternative school campus founded by Sonam Wangchuk. “That is when I realised that what my parents were doing — working with yak — was truly valuable and something I should build on.” He went back and started working with them. At Nomadic Farm, the range covers all yak products — ghee, lassi, curd and churpi. He has been at it for nine to ten years.

What makes yak milk distinct, he says, is not just the animal but where it lives. “Yaks graze high in the Himalayan mountains where almost all the grass and plants are medicinal. The yak eats these medicinal plants directly. So indirectly, we are consuming those plants — it is almost like taking an Ayurvedic medicine. That is what makes yak milk and yak products unique.”

The award is a boost to revive the yak

The award carries a weight beyond the medal for Nurboo, who is president of the Yak Herders Association, a body he founded in 2021 to address a quiet but serious decline.

“In Ladakh, the nomadic community also rears Pashmina goats. Whether it is buyers or promoters, everyone has been so focused on Pashmina that yak has been neglected. In recent years, the number of yaks has declined significantly because yak herding was not earning enough for families.” When he started the association, he began exploring what else could be made from yak — wool products, cheese, dairy. “This award is something we can use as a tool to revive interest in yak, to show people the value of what it produces, to bring yak back to where it belongs. We will use it like a weapon to revive the yak.”