Donkey milk is expensive, costing 50 to 60 euros per kilo.
“Donkey’s milk tastes of love,” said Fatiko Basha, as he caressed his favorite Liza before collecting the animal’s milk. It also makes what is considered one of the most expensive cheeses in the world.
On a small farm in Albania’s southern Gjirokastër region, Basha and her husband Vise use donkey milk to make cheese, yogurt or whey.
It has been praised for its numerous qualities for thousands of years.
Legend says that Cleopatra doused herself in a bath of donkey milk, which ensured her beauty and youth.
Legends aside, it “heals children, is a natural remedy for the respiratory tract, allergies and the immune system”, said Fatiko Basha.
He cleaned a mother’s nipples, trying to extract milk while caressing the animal, as the foal, Zoia (“joy” in Albanian), watched him.
“No matter what their age, donkeys are like kids,” Weiss said with a smile.
They need a lot of affection to produce milk, she said when the donkey started braying to get her attention.
Of course donkeys have to be milked, and milking begins when the foal is three months old.
Donkey milk became popular during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Bashas decided to bring donkey milk to their farm.
Before long they were selling their milk not only in Albania but also in Greece, Montenegro and North Macedonia.
Now, with about 30 females and four males, they plan to enlarge the herd from January, taking advantage of the natural pastures in the foothills of the Gjirokastër mountains.
Nor are the Bashas the only ones stepping into the market: across the region, there are about fifteen donkey farms.
– ‘white gold’ –
Donkey milk may be as extraordinary as its makers claim, but it is also rare.
You can expect to get only half a liter of milk (a little less than a pint) per animal per day.
This deficiency is what makes it so expensive, with prices ranging between 50 to 60 euros ($53 to $63) per kilo.
Weiss Basha said, “Donkey’s milk is white gold: the harvest is hard to get, but every drop makes you happy.”
Over the past year, the Basha family has been producing creamy homemade cheese, as well as yogurt and whey, by purchasing surplus milk from local farmers.
“There is a very high demand for donkey cheese, which is difficult to prepare,” said his daughter Zico Basha, who prepares cheese for a local restaurant at her home in the nearby village of Lazarat.
And if milk is expensive, the price of cheese is even higher: to produce just one kilo of cheese you need at least 25 liters of donkey milk – or more than 1,000 euros worth.
Selling for more than 1,500 euros per kilo, it has the reputation of being one of the most expensive cheeses in the world.
“The French say that a meal without cheese is beauty without eyes, but donkey cheese is really the icing on the cake,” said Jaco Messi, a veterinarian who also produces donkey cheese, which is on the menu of Tirana restaurants. Is included in.
Elio Troque, owner of Oxhacket restaurant in the capital, said customers prefer it fresh, 48 hours after it is prepared.
He said, “Expensive but very tasty, it is perfect for a meal with good wine.”
– A ‘Beauty Secret’ –
In her small workshop, pharmacist Fabzola Messi does not ferment milk to make cheese, but produces a line of donkey milk cosmetics, which have also gained popularity in recent years.
“Donkey’s milk is a real beauty secret,” the 24-year-old said as she hurried to finish her last order of ultra-soft day cream.
Messi has launched her own brand, Leva Natural, and with the festive season approaching she said she hopes to soon be able to export her donkey-milk products around the world.
And she knows how to sell it, she insists: “Donkey milk face cream is very enjoyable… once you’ve used it, it’s hard to give it up.”
(Disclaimer: Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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