A traditional churning-stick and butter churn from Zanskar, Ladakh
Shepherds of Zanskar make lots of butter regularly. They use big traditional wooden containers and churning-sticks (madhanis) for making butter from cream and / or curds. Check the image on the left. But it is a time consuming manual process. They have LPG cylinders and generators for cooking and keeping their basic stony summer shelters in high altitude warm.
I met a group of shepherds at Doksa, near Penzi La in Zanskar during September, 2017. They were winding their summer encampments up to go home in Hemling, Zanskar. I had a chance to see one of their stony houses from inside. During this interaction, the owner asked me could I find a generator-run churning stick. He was very sure that a good product would sell like hot cakes because all shepherds want a fast simple method to make butter.
Their livestock-based lifestyle is not easy although now-a-days they have access to modern fuels. You can make it relatively easier by designing a churning-stick that meets the following requirements:
- Eco-friendly
- Generator-based / LPG-based / Sheep dung and Cow dung-based
- Plastic free
- Wooden and / or of food grade metal
- User-friendly, Easy to use
- Light on budget
- Light weight
- Durable
- Heavy-duty equipment that can survive harsh weather conditions of high altitude
- Zero maintenance
- Others that you can think
If you have machine designing skill and marketing talent, think today. Make a business plan. Start now.
