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Sustainability

Australian wool – best in the world and only getting better

As a renewable, recyclable and biodegradable fibre created in nature, wool has sustainability at its core. The Australian wool industry is working together to enable all stages of the wool supply chain to achieve sustainability goals and deliver positive outcomes for people, planet and prosperity. Woolmark+ presents a roadmap of initiatives designed to help woolgrowers and value chain partners achieve their sustainability targets, from reducing emissions to optimising productivity.

Australian Wool Sustainability Progress Report

This report celebrates the outstanding sustainability programs, initiatives and achievements that the Australian wool industry has achieved during the past 20 years.
While these achievements are significant, we also acknowledge ongoing challenges woolgrowers face and the exciting opportunities to further promote their contributions to improving biodiversity, reducing climate impact and building resilience in their farms, communities and in nature.

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Woolmark+ Roadmap

AWI has developed Woolmark+ - a package of planned and on-going practical initiatives designed to empower woolgrowers and support supply chain partners achieve their sustainability targets.

Woolmark+ aims to future proof wool in response to the increasing consumer and regulatory demands for low-impact products within the fashion and textile industries and along their supply chains. It will help woolgrowers and their customers seize opportunities to safeguard and support global market demand for high-quality wool, and build value for woolgrowers now and into the future.

At its core, Woolmark+ focuses on supporting the livelihoods of woolgrowers in their role as stewards of nature

Discover the initiatives of Woolmark+ 

From the lab to farm gate and beyond, these initiatives support every step of the supply chain to encourage progress and innovation. Read more on: woolmark.com/woolmarkplus

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Sustainability

Defending Wool's Eco Credentials: Wear Wool, Not Waste

AWI’s subsidiary, Woolmark, has released the second chapter of its Wear Wool, Not Fossil Fuel global campaign. With a tagline Wear Wool, Not Waste, this powerful campaign and short film frames wool as a transformational solution to fashion’s environmental challenges. Highlighting the issue of plastic clothing, the video - which has had more than 40 million views since its launch - boldly spotlights the inherent properties of wool: natural, renewable, biodegradable and the world’s most recyclable apparel fibre.

The campaign builds on the awareness and education Woolmark has created for Merino wool. It also increases consumer understanding that Merino wool works with nature, whilst highlighting the impact of choosing synthetic clothing.

NATURAL CAPITAL ACCOUNTING

One of our latest on-farm studies has developed a new method of measuring environmental health to enable Australian woolgrowers to track the health of their environment over time.

Read More

Environmental Sustainability

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On-Farm Research
Water
Healthy water systems are crucial to the Australian environment, sustaining many different plant and animal communities, agricultural enterprises and rural communities.
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On-Farm Research
Soil
Soil health is essential to the productivity and profitability of any wool growing enterprise. We collaborate with industry to provide woolgrowers resources and tools for best practice soil health management.
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On-Farm Research
Biodiversity
Many woolgrowers have profitable enterprises characterised by high levels of native biodiversity by investing in a wide variety of management practices to enhance farm profitability as well as native biodiversity.
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On-Farm Research
Charles Massy, 'Severn Park', Monaro
Charles Massy is a Monaro woolgrower, a scientist and a renowned author, here he shares his insights on regenerative farming.
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On-Farm Research
Charlie and Anne Maslin, 'Gunningrah', Monaro
Charlie and Anne Maslin from the Monaro of NSW use regenerative agriculture to maintain ground cover, flowing streams and feed on offer.
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On-Farm Research
Colin Seis, 'Winona', Central Tablelands
Woolgrower and pasture cropping pioneer Colin Seis is coping with the drought with perennial grassland and regenerative agricultural practices.
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On-Farm Research
Richard Daugherty, ‘Balala’, New England
Richard Daugherty and Sarah Burrows run a self-replacing Merino flock and Dohne fat lamb enterprise at Balala with regenerative and holistic management.
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On-Farm Research
Dung Beetles
The benefits of dung beetles in a production system are many, including benefits for soil, water and pasture, as well as the biological control of flies.
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On-Farm Research
Profitability and Regenerative Agriculture
Research shows that regenerative grazing practices can be profitable and improve farmer wellbeing, at the same time as increasing the health of Australia’s grassy woodlands.
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On-Farm Research
Regenerative Techniques and Benefits
Regenerative agriculture techniques generally focus on the integrated management of soil, water, vegetation, biodiversity and livestock.
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On-Farm Research
Tim Wright, 'Lana', Uralla
By introducing time-controlled rotational grazing of his livestock, Tim Wright has increased productivity while reducing inputs costs.

Wool and the Environment

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On-Farm Research
Wool and the Environment
We collaborate with universities and institutions to identify the environmental benefits of wool within the supply chain.
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Industry News
Fact: wool biodegrades in marine environments
The results of recent AWI-funded research into the biodegradability in marine environments of different fibre types were published in April in a peer-reviewed journal, adding extra scientific credibility to the positive research results for wool.
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Industry News
The rise of sustainable fashion in China
Sustainability continues to be a dominant trend for textile and fashion industries across the world as they seek to improve the environmental and social impacts of their sourcing and manufacturing. This trend very much applies to China, the largest customer of Australian wool, which has made positive steps to be more sustainable.
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Industry News
Eco-sustainable wool felt packaging
2022 is shaping up to be the biggest year yet for Planet Protector Packaging, the award-winning Australian manufacturer and distributor of insulated packaging made from 100% non-textile grade, coarse wool.
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Industry News
2024 IWTO CONGRESS IN ADELAIDE
Come and meet the people that help make the wool industry thrive. Join the international wool community next month in Adelaide, South Australia, for the 93rd Congress of the International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTO).
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Industry News
Marketing Aussie wool in South Korea
With a population of more than 50 million people, an economy ranked twelfth in the world, and the primary driver of customers’ apparel purchases being quality, South Korea is a key consumer market for products made from Australian wool. This double page spread contains a snapshot of some recent initiatives undertaken there by The Woolmark Company.
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Industry News
Campaign for Wool promotion in the UK
The Campaign for Wool’s Wool Month in the UK returned this year during October to promote the natural and sustainable benefits of the fibre to consumers.
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Industry News
Woolmark encourages all to ‘filter by fabric’
To help shoppers to easily identify authentic wool products, The Woolmark Company has launched a new initiative to encourage brands and retailers to include clear and honest product names that accurately communicate fabric composition, and to incorporate a filter on their online stores that allows shoppers to easily search for apparel by fabric type.
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Industry News
Vital management of chemical residues
It is critical that woolgrowers understand and comply with the regulatory limits when using chemical products on their sheep. Following the rules not only optimises the welfare of the sheep, but it also maximises the safety of the operator, the health of the environment and the positive eco-credentials of Australian wool in the marketplace.
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Industry News
IWTO President: wool’s role in sustainability
Klaus Steger was elected President of International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTO) in May. In this interview for Beyond the Bale, Mr Steger outlines the challenges and opportunities for the wool industry in promoting wool as a sustainable fibre.
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Industry News
Sustainable livestock on the global stage
Australia’s sustainability credentials and strong investment in R&D were highlighted at the first-ever Global Conference on Sustainable Livestock Transformation, which was hosted in September by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) at its headquarters in Rome.
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Industry News
Marketing in China goes green
The Autumn/Winter marketing campaign of AWI subsidiary The Woolmark Company in China last year utilised proven strategies that highlighted the eco-credentials of Merino wool to consumers and helped leading brands increase the sales of their wool products.
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Industry News
Sheep delivery system proves its worth
A new ProWay shearing shed that incorporates the lane delivery system developed by AWI was recently built at a property in the Central West of NSW and has proved to be a hit with the wool harvesting staff and the wool producers.
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Industry News
Traceable collection from farm to fashion
To help build demand for its Merino wool apparel, Chinese womenswear brand Edition is showcasing to consumers one of the wool-growing properties in Victoria from which it sourced the fibre for its latest collection.

If you're interested in getting involved or have any questions about Woolmark+ contact: woolmarkplus@wool.com