• Kyrgyzstan is advertising its traditional kumis, or fermented mare’s milk, to draw more visitors.
• The decision was made at a time when probiotic and fermented beverages are popular.
• In the yurts, visitors can also sip on fresh local milk known as saamal.

BISHKEK, July 20 – By advertising its traditional kumis, or fermented mare’s milk, which locals claim is healthy to drink and bathe in, Kyrgyzstan hopes to draw more visitors.

The decision was made at a time when probiotic and fermented beverages are extremely popular across the globe.

The fact that the capital of the Central Asian former Soviet nation of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek, is named after a paddle used to churn the fermenting milk underscores the significance of kumis to Kyrgyz culture.

Kyrgyzstan is enticing tourists to experience the traditional nomadic Kyrgyz lifestyle by staying in a yurt on a lush alpine pasture close to the herds of horses that produce the milk. This is done through promotional videos and festivals.

South of the nation’s capital Bishkek, in a high altitude summer pasture known as Suusamyrin, farmers prepare “kumis” inside a yurt.
South of the nation’s capital Bishkek, in Suusamyr, a high-altitude summer pasture, a Kyrgyz woman enjoys horse milk.
South of the nation’s capital Bishkek, a farmer milks a horse at Suusamyr, a high-altitude summer pasture.

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Approximately 170 kilometres (106 miles) south of the Kyrgyz capital, in the high-altitude summer pasture of Suusamyr, a Kyrgyz woman is seen sipping horse milk. on June 17, 2011 in Bishkek Vladimir Pirogov for Reuters

In the yurts, visitors can also sip on fresh local milk known as saamal.

Ibrahim al-Sharif, a traveller from Mecca, Saudi Arabia, says, “We decided to try it after hearing about saamal and kumis from our friends who had visited Kyrgyzstan.”

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“Even its flavour escapes me. Nothing in Saudi Arabia comes close to it, in my opinion.”

Milking a mare is far more difficult than milking a cow and necessitates practically hugging the animal’s leg. The milking takes place between mid-May and mid-July, with the Pleiades star cluster’s appearance in the night sky serving as a traditional indicator of its conclusion.