Ancose

What Ancose does

ANCOSE — Associação Nacional de Criadores de Ovinos Serra da Estrela (legal name: ANCOSE) — is a Portuguese nonprofit association of Serra da Estrela sheep (bordaleira) breeders, headquartered at Quinta da Tapada in Oliveira do Hospital, Portugal, with 8 employees. The association fulfills quasi-regulatory stewardship functions for the breed, including maintaining the official genealogical registry (Livro Genealógico) and running formal genetic evaluation programs (Avaliação Genética, with documented rounds in 2022 and 2025). It also organizes the annual National and Regional Ovine Contests of Serra da Estrela, which serve as both breeding-evaluation events and member engagement platforms.

The commercial product portfolio is built around artisanal dairy processing of bordaleira sheep milk. The core offering is Queijo Serra da Estrela (traditional sheep milk cheese), supplemented by four derivative products developed since 2008 by technician João Madanelo: the first sheep milk yogurt produced in Portugal (coagulated using cardo thistle flower/flor do cardo), whey butter (manteiga de soro), spreadable cream cheese, and fresh cheese (queijo fresco). The underlying technology combines traditional Serra da Estrela breed husbandry with dairy processing techniques adapted for sheep milk — including thistle-based coagulation, which produces a denser, higher-protein yogurt than cow's milk equivalents.

Revenue mechanics are mixed and small-scale. Commercial sales occur via direct door sales at the association's cold-storage facility (arca frigorífica) at headquarters and through restaurant distribution in Lisbon and Porto, where the yogurt is positioned as a dessert (served with pumpkin jam and walnuts) or used in salads. Yogurt is priced at €1 per unit, with ~2,000 units sold in the current year. The association operates a subsidiary called Sabores e Ambientes and is co-financed through Portuguese and EU rural development programs (PRODER, PDR 2020, PEPAC). A website shop (Loja) is in place but currently inactive (0 items). The customer base spans member breeders (vertical), consumer/restaurant buyers (horizontal), and institutional grant-makers.

Name

Ancose

Legal name

ANCOSE - Associação Nacional de Criadores de Ovinos Serra da Estrela

Website

https://ancose.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ANCOSE is a Portuguese nonprofit national association of Serra da Estrela sheep (bordaleira) breeders, headquartered in Oliveira do Hospital, Portugal. It maintains the breed's genealogical registry and genetic evaluations, organizes national ovine contests, and produces artisanal dairy products including Portugal's first sheep milk yogurt, whey butter, cream cheese, and fresh cheese.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Oliveira do Hospital

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Sheep Milk Dairy Products Sales: Direct sales of processed sheep milk products including yogurt (1 euro each), with commercial quantities of 2000 yogurts sold in the current year. Products also include butter from whey, spreadable cream cheese, and fresh cheese.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

ANCOSE produces and sells artisanal sheep milk dairy products derived from the bordaleira (Serra da Estrela) sheep breed, including Serra da Estrela cheese, Portugal's first sheep milk yogurt, whey butter, spreadable cream cheese, and fresh cheese. Products are coagulated using cardo thistle flower (flor do cardo) and sold directly at the association's headquarters and through restaurants in Lisbon and Porto. The association also delivers breed-related services such as the Livro Genealógico registry, genetic evaluation programs, and the annual National Ovine Competition.

Product overview

ANCOSE (Associação Nacional de Criadores de Ovinos Serra da Estrela) is a national sheep breeders' association based in Oliveira do Hospital, Portugal, dedicated to the Serra da Estrela breed. The organization's product portfolio centers on artisanal sheep milk products, including the renowned Serra da Estrela cheese as the core product, supplemented by the first-ever Portuguese sheep milk yogurt, along with whey butter, spreadable cream cheese, and fresh cheese—all derived from bordaleira sheep milk. Beyond dairy production, ANCOSE provides agricultural services including a genealogical registry (Livro Genealógico) for breed documentation, genetic evaluation services, and organizes the annual National Ovine Competition of Serra da Estrela to promote and preserve the breed.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sheep Milk Yogurt (Iogurte de Leite de Ovelha) First sheep milk yogurt produced in Portugal, made from bordaleira sheep milk and coagulated with cardo thistle flower (flor do cardo); characterized by more body, denser texture, and higher nutritional value than cow's milk yogurt. Sold directly at the door and through restaurants in Lisbon and Porto.
• Serra da Estrela Cheese (Queijo Serra da Estrela) Traditional cheese made from sheep milk of the Serra da Estrela breed; the primary product historically stored in ANCOSE's cold storage facilities and sold at the association's headquarters.
• Whey Butter (Manteiga de Soro) Butter produced from sheep whey, part of the value-added dairy product line developed to utilize sheep milk from Serra da Estrela flocks.
• Spreadable Cream Cheese (Queijo Creme para Barrar) Spreadable cream cheese product made from sheep milk, part of ANCOSE's new product line developed from underutilized sheep milk.
• Fresh Cheese (Queijo Fresco) Fresh cheese made from sheep milk, part of the value-added dairy product portfolio launched to diversify output from Serra da Estrela sheep milk.
• Genealogical Registry (Livro Genealógico) Genealogical registry service for the Serra da Estrela sheep breed, maintaining breed records and pedigree documentation for member breeders.
• Genetic Evaluation (Avaliação Genética) Genetic evaluation service providing genetic assessments for Serra da Estrela sheep breeders, with results available for consultation online (conducted in 2022 and 2025).
• National Ovine Competition of Serra da Estrela (Concurso Nacional de Ovinos Serra da Estrela) Annual national competition event organized by ANCOSE for Serra da Estrela sheep breeders, used to showcase and evaluate breeding animals and promote the breed.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• PRODERminorOthersPRODER (Programa de Desenvolvimento Rural) RSS feed channel associated with ANCOSE website. Not a formal partnership but a rural development program connection through their website infrastructure.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• APROLEP - Associação dos Produtores de Leite de Portugal: Portuguese milk producers' association representing dairy farmers and supporting industry services. Comparable as a national dairy-farmer membership body that, like ANCOSE, runs industry services, technical support, and collective representation.

Direct peers

• FAGE International: Greek dairy multinational best known for yogurt, with a significant sheep and goat milk yogurt range. Directly comparable as a branded producer of sheep milk yogurt positioned on density, nutrition, and Mediterranean provenance.
• Queijaria A Videira: Portuguese artisan cheese maker producing Serra da Estrela PDO cheese from sheep milk in the same Serra da Estrela region. Directly comparable as a small-batch sheep milk dairy producer competing in the same protected-designation category ANCOSE anchors.
• MEVGAL: Greek dairy company producing traditional sheep and goat milk yogurts and feta. Comparable as a regional sheep-milk yogurt specialist with foodservice and retail distribution across Mediterranean markets.

Broad incumbents

• Savencia Fromage & Dairy: French multinational specialty cheese group with Portuguese sheep-cheese operations (including Bergader and local brands). Comparable as a larger incumbent processing sheep milk into branded cheeses and yogurt-adjacent dairy products for retail and foodservice.
• Lactogal: Portugal's largest dairy cooperative, processing cow, sheep, and goat milk into cheeses, yogurts, and butter across multiple brands. Comparable as a Portuguese dairy manufacturer with sheep-milk product lines and cooperative-style governance.

Others

• CAP - Confederação dos Agricultores de Portugal: Portugal's main farmers' confederation representing agricultural associations and cooperatives nationally. Comparable as a national-level agricultural membership organization that aggregates, represents, and lobbies on behalf of livestock producers in Portugal.

Emerging players

• Icelandic Provisions: US-based skyr producer marketing a dense, protein-rich cultured dairy product with a provenance/heritage story. Comparable as an emerging branded player commercializing a traditional, texture-differentiated cultured sheep/cow dairy product into foodservice and retail.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ancose

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ancose