Miðfjörður on Langanesströnd, Iceland
Icelandic warmth, from generation to generation
The farm Miðfjörður is home to one of Iceland's largest eider colonies. Eiderdown has been harvested on this land for centuries — and it is still gathered by hand, nest by nest.
About us
Eider farming at Miðfjörður began around the middle of the last century, when the farmers set out to add value to the land under otherwise harsh conditions. The eider is a high-arctic bird, well suited to life by the northernmost sea. The colony has grown year by year, thanks to sustained work in expanding and maintaining it.
Miðfjörður is a large farm in the old Skeggjastaðahreppur district, now part of the municipality of Langanesbyggð. It lies between two salmon rivers, Miðfjarðará and Hölkná in Bakkafjörður, and has been farmed for centuries. Around 200–300 salmon are caught in Miðfjarðará every year, and the land also offers ptarmigan and goose hunting in season.
The eiderdown
Icelandic eiderdown is a valuable and rare natural product — the softest and lightest down in the world, sought after by the most demanding buyers for its unique qualities: softness, lightness and exceptional insulation. The down is covered with extremely fine, almost invisible, soft hook-like threads that make it cling together. It is remarkably airy, giving it its astonishing lightness, high insulating value and excellent breathability.
Only about 3,000 kg of cleaned Icelandic eiderdown is produced each year. The supply depends entirely on natural conditions.
Each kilogram of cleaned down is gathered from 60–80 nests — every duvet is the harvest of a whole colony.
All Icelandic eiderdown is inspected and weighed by officially appointed eiderdown inspectors after final cleaning, and a sealed certificate accompanies the product.
During certification, the down's cleanliness, smell, colour and cohesion are assessed and its weight confirmed — it is illegal to distribute eiderdown, in Iceland or abroad, without this certification. No synthetic substances are needed at any stage of production, and nothing is ever mixed into the down: a 100% organic natural product.
The eider duck
The common eider (Somateria mollissima) is a large sea duck that breeds across the Arctic. The wild birds have learned that farmers protect them from predators — many keep watch over the colony around the clock during the nesting season.
In return, the female lines her nest with down plucked from her own breast to keep the eggs warm. Its insulation is so remarkable that the eggs stay warm even while she is away at sea.
Icelandic eiders and eider farmers have developed a unique relationship, built on friendship and mutual trust.
The process
The eiders gather off the coast in early May and move onto the land around the middle of the month. Nesting begins, pairs form, and the female plucks down from her breast to warm the eggs.
The down is collected by hand throughout the summer, always taking care never to take all of it from any nest. The first ducklings hatch in early June — from then on, eggshell must also be picked out of the down.
Nesting is largely over by mid-July. Speed matters now: down must be gathered from abandoned nests before it blows away or is ruined by rain.
Grass, moss, eggshell and seaweed are removed and the down is dried — painstaking work that can last well into autumn.
Special machines complete the cleaning, and the down is heated to 100 °C. Every remaining feather is picked out by hand. No synthetic substances are used at any stage, and nothing is ever mixed into the down — a pure, organically produced natural product.
Products
Æðarból sf. has duvets sewn to order, in partnership with specialists with long experience in producing duvets and other eiderdown products.
A duvet measuring 140×200 cm typically contains about 1 kg of down.
All sizes in cm — other sizes on request.
All down not used for duvets or other products is exported. Our main markets are Germany and Japan.
Fully cleaned eiderdown can be bought directly from the company, in quantities from half a kilo.
Contact us for prices and delivery times.
The eider colony at Miðfjörður is protected under Icelandic regulation no. 252/1996, as announced in the Official Gazette on 21 March 2019. The protection applies from 15 April to 14 July each year and means that:
Contact
If you would like to buy eiderdown or products made with eiderdown, send us a line — we answer every enquiry.
midfjordur@gmail.comMiðfjörður, Langanesbyggð, Iceland — view on map