Business Rural North Winter 2021

10 | Seeds of change for wool resurgence PHOTOS: Campaign for Wool New Zealand Chair Tom O’Sullivan with Prince Charles. The Campaign for Wool is a global endeavour initiated by The Prince of Wales to raise awareness amongst consumers about the benefits offered by the fibre. Cleaned, processed, and compressed bales of wool ready for export. Kim Newth CAMPAIGN FOR WOOL » Tom O’Sullivan W oolgrower Tom O’Sullivan, who chairs the New Zealand arm of the global Campaign for Wool initiative, is in no doubt that our wool sector is in crisis but believes positive change now underway will help support a brighter future for wool. Campaign for Wool is optimistic that this shift can be harnessed to fuel recovery for wool as a leading natural fibre after years of falling strong wool prices. Tom comes from a family of sheep farmers, go- ing back to the 1940s when his grandparents first started farming Corriedale ewes in Canterbury. Today, he and partner Rachael, with daughters Ruby, 9, and Tess, 8, are based in the North Island, farming in southwestern Hawke’s Bay. At Pukenui Station, they run approximately 4500 Perendale ewes and 1300 hoggets, along with cattle and deer, wintering 13,000 stock units on average. From direct experience, he is well aware of the pressures on sheep farmers. “Shearing has gone from an important revenue stream for farmers, to simply a significant animal health cost. It cost us $30,000 last year to shear our sheep and dispose of the wool – farmers just can’t carry that sort of cost long term. The bottom line is if we don’t start to see an improvement in wool prices then farmers will go towards Wiltshire sheep, a breed that shed their wool, or find an alternative to wool, seeing an end to wool as a natural resource.” When approached to join Campaign for Wool two years ago, Tom readily stepped up to the role. As well as being a farmer, Tom holds an agribusi- ness degree from Lincoln University and has a solid background in meat marketing. He is proud to be using these skills to help spearhead a better future for wool. “Strong wool has been used to make carpets for a long time but outside of that there has been little product development. We’re now starting down a path of supporting companies commer- cialising value-added wool products and can see exciting movements, for example in the home and office environments. While it’s still important to get the message out on the benefits of wool, what we want is for people to buy wool products.” Over recent months, Campaign for Wool has been working alongside Big Save Furniture, sup- porting their move into wool furniture and bedding with a nationwide launch tipped for June. “It is a great example of a company recognising the consumer trend towards wanting more natural products. It would be fantastic if we could get more furniture made from wool into New Zealand homes.” Consumer education is key priority for Cam- paign for Wool. One of its programmes, Wool in Schools, runs out of two educational shipping containers and has been well-received in New Zealand schools. • to page 14 “We’re now starting down a path of supporting companies commercialising value-added wool products and can see exciting movements, for example in the home and office environments. While it’s still important to get the message out on the benefits of wool, what we want is for people to buy wool products.” “In early March we also ran a live webinar to the New Zealand Institute of Architects on the history and science of wool and why it should be considered by architects and designers when Harnessing the performance of NZ wool. The Foreverbreathe™ Specification features a cutting- edge combination of healthy, sustainable materials to manage air exchanges, humidity, and air quality. Visit: healthbasedbuilding.com