3 minute read
Skodi Rein
From the large fells and plains of Northern Norway, Karen Utsi Sara and John Anders Sara keep old Sámi traditions alive. In 2012, they founded Skodi Rein, a small family business that produces awardwinning dried reindeer meat, the traditional way.
A taste of wild nature
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“It’s not your usual job. Rather, it’s a lifestyle,” Karen Utsi Sara, one half of Skodi Rein, tells us.
“Reindeer herding has been an important industry in Norway for many centuries, especially for the indigenous Sámi population. Our families have herded reindeer for generations, and reindeer meat has always been a large part of our diet.”
Skodi Rein prides itself on its use of traditional production methods, which have been passed down from Karen’s ancestors.
“Our main product is dried reindeer meat. We use the traditional method of drying the meat outside in a traditional drying house for several weeks.”
The family also produces other forms of reindeer meat, such as smoked meat, which is prepared in a traditional Sámi lavvu, but this is currently only sold locally.
Distribution is the biggest challenge for Skodi Rein, Karen explains. The company was founded when distribution of reindeer meat was at a low ebb. Although it remains difficult, the business has worked hard on marketing their products.
“When we started, there was little to no marketing of reindeer meat. In fact, the media only portrayed negative stories about reindeer herding. This was what we wanted to change; we wanted to show the positive and unique things that reindeer herding has to offer.”
One of the many special things about Skodi Rein’s reindeer meat production is the focus on animal welfare and ecology. The reindeer live freely in enormous grazing areas all year, in what Karen describes as “the world’s most ecological and sustainable meat production”. These are areas without fences, and each reindeer is traced from birth to slaughter. Following the methods of their ancestors, the reindeer are herded from the winter grazing area on the plains, to the summer area by the coast, and they walk for hundreds of kilometres each year.
The great taste of wilderness, Karen says, comes from the natural grazing, as the reindeer feed on lichen and heather, instead of compound feed.
“We’ve had two recent bad years for the grazing areas, and it’s scary, in these times of climate change, not to know what will happen in the future. But we don’t know, if the reindeer are forced to switch fully to compound feed due to climate change, whether it will sacrifice some of the unique taste. I almost can’t think about it, it’s like a nightmare.”
The taste of Skodi Rein’s dried reindeer meat has won a few awards and prizes. In 2017, they were awarded the “Reindeer meat producer of the year” prize by the Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food. And for a brand that wants their name to be associated with quality and a unique and authentic flavour, that’s a really important achievement.
“We’re proud to be one of the first businesses to create marketing for reindeer meat, and we have seen the positive effects of this already. Our dreams for the future are to become the world’s biggest dried reindeer meat producer, and to have our unique, sustainable product sold across Norway, as well as abroad.”
