But, for a long time, Mongolians have not seen the benefits of possessing this precious resource. Foreign traders bought the raw material and processed it abroad, so the economic upside took a detour out of the country.

This is why the EBRD teamed up with the European Union and the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to add value across the whole production cycle – from the local farmer to exporters in Ulaanbaatar.

Sustainable farming

The story of a beautiful cashmere scarf starts in the picturesque hillside of the north-western Khövsgöl Province. The sight could not be more different from the glitzy lights of Ulaanbaatar: it is a land of animals covered in fur, not man, whom they outnumber by a healthy 25:1.

Batulzii is a local farmer who lives with his wife and young children in a traditional yurt. Cashmere goats are shorn in May, followed by sheep, he explains. They naturally start to shed their wool in June and if he does not cut it, it simply falls to the ground.

It is the first part of the chain where we strive to add value to the wool production. FAO offers training to farmers, from grassland management and providing the right feed to the animals to the relevant sustainable industry standards.

“After cutting the wool, I sell it to the Leader Cashmere factory,” Batulzii explained. “This is how I earn a living.”