Breed Profile: Jämtget Swedish Landrace Goat

Swedish Landrace Goats of Jämtland Lead the Artisan Food Revolution

August 3, 2024Tamsin CooperGoat Breeds

Reading Time: 5 minutes

BREED: The Jämtland goat (or Jämtget) is one of three landrace goats in Sweden.

ORIGIN: The central highlands of Sweden, bordering Norway, are high mountains or plateaus with numerous large lakes. The area is remote due to its difficult terrain and cold maritime climate. Its small population has traditionally kept landrace goats for cheese and other products for hundreds of years. The Jämtget is especially suited to the harsh climate, terrain, and local pasture of the Jämtland region. Goat keeping and subsistence farming were formerly important rural activities in marginal rural areas.

The History of the Jämtget

Goats go way back in Swedish tradition. Today’s Jämtget lines are a remnant of rural smallholders’ small herds of the nineteenth century. Engla Persson’s farm in Aspås purchased goats from Rödön in 1942. (Both these villages are in Jämtland.) Reportedly, these goats had lived on the Rödön farm since at least the late 1800s. Persson had about 30 does and two bucks, all of various colors. In 1991, when conservation efforts were underway, the herd was taken over by Skansen and Fredriksdal open-air museums in southern Sweden.

Scania Zoo brought white Jämtland goats from Oviken, Jämtland, in 1951, and regularly brought in new bucks from the region. The zoo aimed to perfect the white line with dark markings, so they removed colored goats from the breeding pool.

jamtland-goats — Jämtland goats in Scania Zoo, Skåne County, Sweden. Photo credit: Calle Eklund/Vivo on Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0.

These conservation efforts responded to the alarming drop in landrace population by the nineties. Swedish food production had modernized dramatically over the previous few decades. Remote rural farmers mainly kept goats for home cheese-making, and the industry milk board stopped collecting surplus milk in the 1970s. When farmers attempted to sell their excess cheeses, they found little demand. Paulina Rytkönen quoted one farmer as saying: “Only the older generations bought the traditional red cheeses, that by then looked like small rabbits (dark in color and hairy from the cheese molds). Modern consumers were suspicious and had been educated with modern practices. The cheeses they bought were bright in color and packaged in airtight plastic.”

Traditional cheese-making began to die out as farmers sidelined goat-keeping in favor of other agricultural activities. In the seventies, only 50 producers remained. The County Board Administration (CBA) hired agricultural graduate Bodil Cornell to lead initiatives to support local goat farming.

jamtland-kid — Jämtget kid at Nordens Ark, Bohuslän, Sweden. Photo credit: Lars Falkdalen Lindahl on flickr.com CC BY-SA 2.0.

Rebuilding the Market for Artisan Dairy

In 1983, six farmers formed a cooperative with local government funding, which grew to 20 farms until it dissolved in 2010. Together, they conceived a new modern recipe for white cheese that they marketed as Vit Caprin. After giving out free samples at fairs, they attracted market attention. The CBA also provided low-rent mobile equipment to help with start-up costs. As they grew, they elaborated new cheeses, some farms enjoying considerable success.

Hygiene regulations designed for industrial production were a major barrier, which was overcome eventually by modifying regulations to suit the requirements of artisan production.

In 1995, a CBA/EU project extended research to other countries and set up artisan training, including courses by French cheese expert Michel Lepage. Training expanded to include other artisan farm produce and gained national support in 2006 by establishing the Eldrimner National Resource Center. The original CBA initiative, designed to save goat farms, exceeded its aims by opening up new markets for small artisan businesses nationwide.

In 2004, a cellar-stored goat cheese, aged in traditional cellars in the summer pastures, made its mark and is now listed by the Slow Food Consortium.

CONSERVATION STATUS: A threatened landrace numbering just over 500 breeding animals. The population has grown since 1993, when only 31 were recorded, through the efforts of conservationists and rural artisans.

Characteristics of the Jämtget

BIODIVERSITY: Evidence from DNA and archaeological studies suggests that goats of the Atlanto-Scandinavian breed group migrated with pastoralists along the Danube to Northern Europe, arriving around 4,000 years ago. Since then, they have slowly adapted to the colder, wetter climates of the areas in which they settled. The Jämtget retains its hardy traits, without strong selection for production. It remains finer and more tolerant of cold mountain conditions than the landrace of southern Sweden, the Göingeget, although coloring and general appearance are similar. The Lappget is smaller and adapted to the northern reindeer pastures. Therefore, each landrace has its unique traits.

jamtget-doe — A jämtget at Kallhäll’s 4-H farm, Järfälla, Sweden. Photo credit: FarbrorAnna on Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0.

DESCRIPTION: A medium-sized goat with a slim, fine-limbed, elegant stature. The coat is long and flowing, while a thick undercoat grows in winter. The head is narrow with a straight profile, and wattles may be present. The majority bear horns, although there are a few polled animals.

COLORING: Various shades of brown, black, gray, and white. Darker areas often mark the face, ears, legs, and down the spine. White with dark markings is a frequent color scheme due to selective breeding. Pied and belted patterns also occur.

HEIGHT TO WITHERS: Does 22–28 in. (55–70 cm); bucks 24–31 in. (60–80 cm).

WEIGHT: Does 77–120 lb. (35–65 kg); bucks 110–220 lb. (50–100 kg).

jamtget-Scania-Zoo — Jämtget in Scania Zoo, Skåne County, Sweden. Photo credit: Calle Eklund/Vivo on Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0.

POPULAR USE: Originally dual-purpose, more recently artisan dairy.

PRODUCTIVITY: Does can produce up to 132 gallons (500 liters) of milk per year that is rich and suitable for cheese-making.

ADAPTABILITY: Uniquely adapted to regional conditions of the highlands and lakes of west-central Sweden. They survive thriftily on marginal land in a cold climate.

“What is striking is that the farm dairy sector in Jämtland is neither a modern industry nor a traditional artisan trade—it is a mix of both. This very condition is part of the answer to how this trade managed to emerge and it also illustrates which are the principles that the future survival of the sector relies on.”
Paulina Rytkönen, associated professor in economic history at Södertörn University