It has been part of the food habits of nomadic communities for generations.
As reported by Rediff, Nurboo’s Churpi was priced locally at around Rs 1,100 to Rs 1,200 per kg. After the fame, it is at around Rs 1,600 to Rs 2,000 per kg. While, small moon-shaped sweet Churpi is priced at about Rs 20 per piece. Nurboo’s family has a herd of around 100 yaks, while other villagers also rear animals in the area. At his farm, a female yak may provide around 1.5 litres of milk a day during the productive season, according to the source material. The entire herd can produce around 60-70 litres of milk a day, from which roughly 15-20 kg of Churpi can be made. A four-kilogram sample of his soft yak Churpi was eventually sent to São Paulo for the Mundial do Queijo do Brasil 2026.
Nurboo has repeatedly said that his family and other households in Ladakh have been making it for years. Churpi, also called Churpe or Chura in parts of the region, is a traditional cheese made from milk. In Ladakh, the most valued version is made from yak milk. It has been part of the food habits of nomadic communities for generations. It is not a cheese that was recently developed for the international market. Unlike many familiar cheeses, Ladakhi Churpi is commonly used as a cooking ingredient. It can be added to soups, curries and watery noodle preparations, including local dishes eaten during the cold months. The price depends on the type and where it is purchased. Traditionally, the cheese was sold in small quantities in local markets. This means the price has changed as demand for the product has increased. Yak milk is available only in limited quantities. Nurboo did not originally set out to make a cheese for an international competition. After training at SECMOL, the alternative education centre founded by Sonam Wangchuk, he returned to work with his family. He experimented with products such as mozzarella and other European-style cheeses, but Ladakh’s extremely dry and cold conditions made the process difficult. He eventually decided to focus on the cheese his community already knew.
