Here are photographs of several Lihasula rams. Rams in Finland are fairly large and can weight up to 328 lbs.
After meeting with ProAgria Director, Lassi Uotila we toured Lihasula, which is the only approved semen export station in Finland. The above photo shows some of the Lihasula ewes. A high quality ewe will weigh close to 250 lbs. Here are photographs of several Lihasula rams. Rams in Finland are fairly large and can weight up to 328 lbs.
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Here is an example of exquisite Finnish art on Finnsheep skins. This breathtaking artwork was completed by Anu Pentti. Additional detailed slides depicting this art will be shown to members at the annual meeting. We visited the farm of Marjukka and Oiva and saw their Kainuunharmas breed of sheep. The Kainuunharmas have been officially recognized as a different breed of sheep than the Finnsheep. Anu treated us to a homemade delicious lamb dinner with her family. Deb dressed up as a bear for Halloween since it is the national symbol of Finland. Here she is showing off her costume made from Finnsheep Lamb skin. Notice the stack of skins behind Deb. Visit to Central Market in Tampere. This is the wool shop in the local marketplace. A visit to Janne's farm. Janne is a young Finnsheep Farmer with 200 ewes. He resently purchased two rams from Lihasula. Heidi was nterviewed by a jouralist for the ProAgria Future Countryside Magazine published for Finland Farmers. A few of Janne's ewes. This morning Heidi and I left Helsinki by train to visit the town of Lahti and the Fiber Mill in Mikkeli. Heidi and the Wool Quality Inspector examined raw Finnsheep wool prior to processing. Finnsheep fiber after washing, drying and combing. Finnsheep Fiber being machine spun. After processing below are examples of Finnsheep Yard ready for sale. Pirtin Kehraamo Oy is the largest mill in Finland that processes domestic wools. Pia's Sheep House. Please notice the muscling and bone size of the ewes. ProAgria's and IFR Consultant, Pia Parikka, shows us one of her premium breeding rams. After the visit to Pia's farm, Heidi and I traveled to Tampere where we had dinner with ProAgria Director, Lassi Uotila. Tomorrow we are meeting Anu Pentti and Kaie Ahlskog and visit more Finnsheep farms before traveling to Lihasula. Today was spent touring Helsinki. There are lots of shops featuring interesting wool and felt products made from Finnsheep wool. Finland has just started branding its Finnsheep items and they have a unique logo. Deb and I toured the National Museum of Finland with Marjut and Tarja and later had authentic Finnish food at Ravintola Juuri with them. Everything was delicious and organic! Marjut is a fiber artist and she teaches felting arts to many people. Coffee breaks are taken several times a day and coffee shops are open everwhere even on a Sunday. Many places are closed in Helsinki on Sunday and those that are open always close by 6 pm. Tomorrow we head out by train to Lahti. It has been interesting talking to Marjut and Tarja and learning about the improvements they continue to make to the Finnsheep breed and has been of specific interest to us due to future goals for the breed. Tarja Krannila enjoying her gift of Hershey's chocolate from the USA! The wool flower gifts below where presented to Heidi and Deb upon arrival. They are made of Finnsheep wool and feature the natural Finnsheep colors. Heidi and Deb are leaving the hotel in a few minutes to tour Helsinki with Tarja. We will post more when we return to our technologically-advanced hotel. Finland is very advanced technologically. Northern Lights IFR President, Heidi Trimbur and IFR Secretary, Deb Olschefski will depart Saturday morning for Finland. Heidi was invited to speak at the Finnsheep Conference, held in Finland, by ProAgria of Finland. ProAgria and the Finnsheep Breeders Association of Finland work as a single entity to preserve and promote the Finnsheep breed in Finland and abroad. Heidi has worked with ProAgria for several years and the organization continues to serve as a consultant for the IFR. Follow along as Heidi and Deb begin their journey in King Of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Heidi and Deb will be blogging daily and IFR members are welcome to comment. Comments will be posted daily! |
Finnsheep in the fallArchives
October 2015
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