Education and information from government agencies and industry organisations are useful for staff of wool broking companies. We have selected a variety of resources for Wool-growing, Raw Wool, Manufacturing, and Marketing.
Wool-growing
Australian wool: The fibre of our nation
Making more from sheep
Woolgrowing
GoPro Series: Theldarapa Station Shearing 2016
Wool sheep welfare
The wool industry is committed to the highest standards of sheep care and well-being and supports scientific research in this area. Wool farmers are dedicated to the job of looking after their animals and keeping them healthy, to ensure the wool maintains the right qualities for the textile industry. Farmers are always looking towards the best available animal husbandry practices to ensure good economic management of their business and optimum results in their produce. This proactive approach provides uncompromising welfare standards for sheep across the world.
Raw Wool – from Farm to Auction Buying
Shearing
Wool classing
Superfine quality assurance
Wool grower
Wool broker
Wool buyer
Emergency Animal Disease response
An outbreak of an Emergency Animal Disease (such as Foot and Mouth Disease) could create an enormous disruption to the Australian wool industry, costing billions of dollars of lost income. It is important that wool broking staff are aware of the issues and what will happen with the outbreak of such a disease.
Web Link - Animal Health Australia
Manufacturing
The processes for processing wool and manufacturing wool products
Most Australian wool is used for the manufacture of apparel products, and in the production of these two main manufacturing systems or methods are used. These are the worsted system and the woollen system. In comparison to the woollen system, the worsted system involves more processing stages during manufacturing.
Woolmark certification standards
The Woolmark Licensing Program covers yarns, fabrics and most articles of clothing, as well as bedding, carpets and upholstery. In addition The Woolmark Company endorses products for apparel care such as wool detergents and cycles on washing machines, dryers and irons as part of the Woolmark Apparel Care program. To ensure Woolmark Quality Standards are maintained, The Woolmark Company has developed a comprehensive set of Specifications and Test Methods. Products must meet or exceed the requirements of the relevant Specification prior to gaining Woolmark certification. To assess products against the Specifications, an independent Authorised Laboratory will use the appropriate Woolmark Test Methods.
Marketing and the Consumer
Innovation with wool
Nick Wooster visits the source
Consumer insights
Insights are offered for each key market, taking into account market size, purchasing trends and opportunities for wool.
Benefits of wool
Merino wool provides fashion designers with a blank canvas; it is a fibre of infinite potential with a vast array of benefits, which help to educate trade and consumer markets what is Merino wool.
Wool and the environment
Recent research conducted by the wool industry shows that wool’s environmental footprint is low when it comes to the consumption of energy and water during the consumer use phase. This makes wool products more sustainable compared to other fibre products. However, current fibre environmental benchmarking tools don’t allow for wool to demonstrate its strengths in this area.
Wool Life Cycle Assessment
Since 2012, the wool industry has consistently invested into Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) research by joining forces through the IWTO Sustainable Practices Working Group. The joint goal is develop consistent methods that deliver accurate, fair and up to date LCA data. Currently, analysis of environmental performance is largely based on life cycle thinking. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool that can be used to identify and measure the use of natural resources, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other environmental impacts over the entire lifespan of a wool product.
Health and wellness – the benefits of wool
Consumer demand for health and wellness products is on the rise. With an ageing population in Western countries, an increase in birth rates in emerging countries, and a global focus on healthy and sustainable lifestyles, "wellthness" is a key and long-term trend – and one in which wool has a large part to play.
Wool and recycling
Wool’s post-consumer life cycle stage reveals wool’s true sustainability benefits. The so called post-use phase of wool begins when a consumer donates or disposes of a wool product. The wool product is then either re-used by another consumer in the same form or it can go through different recycling stages and become another type of wool product. Research conducted by Prof. Stephen Russell of Leeds University revealed that while wool has a only a 1.3% market share in the total fibre market, among recycled textile fibres wool holds a 5% share. This indicates that wool items are of higher quality and durability to be lasting longer in order to perform in their second life. Additionally wool is a valuable fibre very well suitable for the recycling process.
