Fjäll

Fjäll cattle (Swedish: Fjällko), commonly known as the "Swedish Mountain Breed", is a breed of cattle, native to Sweden. The breed was first recognised in the late 19th century but has history back to at least the Viking age.

The breed was threatened in the 1970s and 1980s and a breed association was formed in 1995. In 1998, there were estimated to be 1000 breeding cows in Sweden.^[1]

History

Pre 1893

The breed has been around since pre-Viking times. They were introduced to Britain when the Vikings came and descended into the British White breed, which now populate areas of Viking inhabitation, such as East Anglia.^[2] They were also mentioned 1296 AD. Here, they were described as being 'small, hornless, white or whitish grey, often with dark spots'.^[3]

Post 1893

The cattle were first officially recognised in 1893. At this time the average milk production per year was between 1200 1400 kilograms and also weighed 300 350 kilograms.

In 1970–80 the breed was nearly driven to extinctinction due to extensive crossbreeding. However, in 1995 the Swedish Mountain Breed Association (Svensk fiallrasavel) was set up and since then the numbers of cattle have since been increasing steadily.^[1]

Appearance

The appearance can vary from being totally white to totally black or red. They are often kept in mountainous areas in Sweden, for dairy produce because of their ability to survive on infertile soil and survive the cold winter. They also have one of the best grass to milk production ratios.^[4] They typically produce 5500 kilograms of milk per year and the milk has a high butter fat content, usually between 4 5%. The protein content is typically 3.6%. The cow is one of four surviving native Swedish breeds.^[5]

The average weight of fully grown cows is 600 kilogrammes and they have a height of 125 cm. Fully grown bulls can weigh 650–800 kilograms and are typically between 135 and 140 centimeters tall.^[6]

References