Mongolia Yak Festival
Mongolian Yak Festival is an annual event celebrated in the Orkhon River Valley in Bat-Ulziit soum, Uvurkhangai province on 23 July. Except for the Yak Festival, the Orkhon River Valley is famous for its outstanding nature, top attractions, Buddhist Monasteries, historical remains, and evidence. Therefore, the Orkhon Valley has registered as the World Cultural Heritage Site by UNESCO.
The organizers of the Yak Festival are an administrative office of Uvurkhangai Province, an administrative office of Bat-Ulziit soum, The World Cultural Heritage Site Orkhon River Tourist Association.
The main purpose of the festival is to promote the yak herder nomads, improve and increase the benefits of the yak related products, introduce the yak culture to the public, and attract tourists.
The main events of the Yak Festivals are:
About Mongolian Yak
There are approximately 1,005,000 yaks in 13 provinces of Mongolia. Thus, Mongolia has the world’s second-largest yak heads in the world after China. The world yak population is 14.2 million. The mountainous yak habitat areas of Arkhangai, Uvurkhangai, Khuvsgul, Bayan-Ulgii, Uvs, and Khovd provinces are among the top tourist destinations in Mongolia. Not only the mountainous northern and western regions of Mongolia. The yaks are in mountainous areas of the Gobi desert such as Bayankhongor, Zavkhan, and Gobi Altai provinces. The yaks were domesticated relatively late and their isolated mountainous pastureland influences the animal’s strong characters.
Sustainable farming and yak benefits
Yaks play an important role in the nomadic breeders’ life. The nomads are 100% self-sufficient in meat and milk products. Ove 60 types of dairy products are made of yak milk. The yak milk is nutritious with 7.2% fat, 5.3% protein, and 5.2% sugar. The fat amount increases in autumn after September and reaches 9% to 12%. We suggest you try the yak dairy product during your visit to Mongolia and feel the nutrition. The yak meat is good quality meat naturally low in cholesterol, saturated fats, and calories. The yak meat fat looks yellow and rich in keratin, the source of A vitamin.
The nomads use yaks more than horses and camels for the transports and loading when moving the gers, bringing fuels, water, etc. Factories process yak wool and skin for clothing and other consumer products while the nomads hand process the yak wool and hair for their daily use.
