Conrado Blanco Mamani, Chile

01/02/2025

Born and raised in Chile’s northern highlands, some 4 500 meters above sea level, 65-year-old Conrado Blanco Mamani has dedicated his life to the llamas and alpacas that inhabit the Andes mountains and permeate its cultural identity.

“For many years, camelid farming has been my family’s economic support and that of a large part of the inhabitants of my community,” says the man from Guallatire, a highland town near the Bolivian border. “With this we have been able to survive doing what we like and what we inherited from our ancestors.”  

His mixed herd of 400 llamas and alpacas roam free on a large plot of highland pasture. They provide him with meat and fibre to use for his family or sell at the local market.

Conrado is keen to maintain all the practices associated with camelid farming, he says, because he understands them as an ancestral way of life that is at risk of being lost. That includes drying the meat in the highland sun to make charqui, a tasty jerky that keeps llama and alpaca meat preserved for a long time.

Recently, he’s also begun inviting tourists to his farm to see his animals and meat production. His goal is to turn his land into a sustainable model where eco-tourism is intertwined with camelid production. 

That also means upholding traditional methods to care for the pastures and local environment, along with the cultural heritage, he says. He is particularly concerned about the maintenance of bofedales, or high-altitude wetlands, which are important for the availability of fresh water for animals and people in this mountain territory. To this end, he grazes his animals on rotation and limits the number of animals that can roam in one particular area at a time, for example.

Traditional llama and alpaca farming is a very environmentally friendly job, he says. “And that is why it must be respected and protected. Above all, it is a responsibility for future generations, so that our traditions are not lost.”