Mongolia’s 160.9 thousand herding households and their 66.6 million head of livestock are bracing for what is expected to be another tough winter. The government has tasked the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry to prepare 30.8 thousand tones of hay and 11.7 thousand tonnes of fodder. Currently, winter readiness stands at 82.1 percent nationwide.

The winter is especially cold in Mongolia. Daytime temperatures are often 30 degrees below Celcius, sometimes dipping to below -40°C.  In some parts of the country, it even falls to below -50°C. When there is a lot of snow, combined with bitter cold and wind, conditions become especially dangerous: in Mongolian this is known as a Dzud. Livestock have trouble reaching fodder through the snow and so freeze to death.