Here's what it takes to feed a baby elephant

  • $12

    1 Bottle of Milk
    2 litres of nutritious milk

  • $96

    8 Milk Bottles
    1 day’s milk for 1 elephant

  • $672

    56 Milk Bottles
    1 week’s milk for 1 elephant

  • $2,880

    240 Milk Bottles
    1 month’s milk for 1 elephant

Every bottle of milk nourishes an elephant orphan at Reteti – helping them grow strong enough to return to the wild. Through the Milk to Market Program, Samburu Milk Mamas earn sustainable incomes while improving livestock health and caring for the land.

One bottle feeds a calf, strengthens a community, and helps restore the landscape they’ll one day call home again.

The ripple effects of your generosity…

Make a lasting impact today!

  • 1,280+ Milk Mamas

    Milk Mamas have started their own businesses, opened bank accounts, and now save, support their families, and pay for their children’s school fees.

  • Extensive regreening

    Led by the Milk Mamas and Eco Warriors, more than 8,000 bunds that were dug in 2024 are capturing rainwater, transforming rangelands, and bringing life to our land.

  • Reseeding 100+ acres

    The Milk Mamas also established a seed bank of indigenous seeds, which are planted across hundreds of acres during the rainy seasons to ensure that new life thrives across Namunyak.

  • Better grazing, more milk

    Better grass leads to higher yields per goat, allowing Mamas to reduce their herd size while increasing their production.

  • Healthy ecosystem for all

    Through these practices, we've created a thriving ecosystem that supports the wellbeing of Reteti's historic 2024 Release Herd.

  • Erosion control

    Countless gabions have been built to control erosion ditches, to create a healthier landscape for all.

  • Goat-dropping fertiliser

    Milk Mamas turn goat droppings into fertiliser, enriching the soil for healthier grass, which leads to better milk.

  • Women-led change

    2025 saw Milk Mamas championing leadership in rangeland health – and the launch of Women Champions for Rangelands Rehabilitation (WCRR), which engages Samburu women in gully healing, bund digging and rotational grazing.

The History of the Milk to Market Program

When 2020 lockdown travel restrictions made it impossible for Reteti to import powdered milk, The Sarara Foundation launched a groundbreaking program that empowers Samburu women while providing Reteti’s elephant orphans with sustainable, cost-effective nutrition.

Many Samburu families have excess goat milk after meeting their household needs. The Milk Mamas sell this surplus to Reteti, supplying a unique and superior milk formula made from goat’s milk. The income earned transforms livelihoods and strengthens a thriving Indigenous community. Learn more about the program

Follow the daily milk journey…

  • 06:00

    At daybreak, a new milk journey begins by milking the goats. The milk that’s not needed for household use is brought to the milk market.

  • 08:00

    The milk market opens! We collect milk from more than 1,280 Mamas across the conservancy with the help of a team of motorcycle riders.

  • 09:30

    Upon arrival at Reteti, the milk goes into our solar-powered pasteurisers; and then to our milk kitchen where the bottles are prepared.

  • 11:45

    Bottled and ready for the noon feed. Our (t)rusty wheelbarrow helps transport our milk bottles to the boma.

  • 12:00

    Glug, glug, glug! Each elephant drinks a 2-litre bottle every three hours. The milk that was delivered will be used in the bottles of the next 8 feeds.

  • Impact

    Mamas are earning an income for the first time, allowing them to save, send their kids to school and support their families.

WATCH OUR MILK STORIES ON YOUTUBE

Your generosity ripples through the length and breadth of this landscape, safeguarding ecosystems and shaping a future where elephants and people thrive side by side.

Donate milk today!