The Réttir, or annual sheep gathering, is a long standing tradition that is steeped in rich history and community building. Many people, of all ages and assumed differing backgrounds, gather to participate in the day long festivities. One aspect farmers and the general public often bring up is whether or not sheep gathering can be a sustainable practice. I think sheep gathering does have a place in sustainability through community. However, the sheep need a generous amount of space to graze and their profit is not too great. For example, the sheep gathering event is a great educational way to display the importance of a traditional way of living. However, the sheep will completely eat away the area they are in during the summer months. The grazing may not allow certain areas of vegetation to heal from the previous season. With Iceland’s minimal land for vegetation left, this thought can be scary. During our extra sheep herding session I asked Hurdur, a local farmer, how many sheep his family owned. He said they had about 180 or 150 and slaughtered about 120 lambs. We asked if he turned a profit and he said not really. In the last year, the price of meat had gone down about 30 percent and the list of countries he could export to had gotten shorter. Therefore, is the amount of vegetation sheep are eating worse for the country especially when meat export profits are continuously decreasing?
All the best,
Luke Watkins