The Yarn

From paddocks of Western Australia with Steven Bolt to the streets of Western Europe with Damien Pommeret. We discuss the current hurdles and hopes in the industry from farm to fashion and look towards the green shoots of wool demand that may be emerging in our overseas markets.

Innovation and a commitment to quality is why MJ Bale grew to be 55 stores and 350 staff in just 12 years. Founder and CEO Matt Jensen talks through his woolshed dream of starting his own wool retailing business.

With a change in the local landscape and weather patterns, woolgrower Alistair McDougall is trialing legume pastures to fill his autumn feed gap and improve soil quality. High in protein, highly digestible, hardy and persistent, Alistair shares his hopes for these legumes in his livestock system.

New age wool masks have been produced and may well bring a silver lining to the COVID pandemic. Australia’s biggest sheep show takes its ram sale entirely online.

The Australian Merino Lamb Trial explores whether wethers can pay for the crop they graze. Craig Wilson runs the trial which is showing great results.

Surveys are showing concerning levels of resistance to some flystrike prevention options. Hear head of research at AWI Dr Jane Littlejohn discuss options and where to from here.

What’s around the corner for wool marketing? In an altered reality, hear about the roles that commuting, Amazon, Prada and online shopping will play in marketing Australian wool. AWI’s GM of Marketing Communications Laura Armstrong takes us past the doom and gloom to better days ahead.

There’s a lot to consider when designing and constructing a new shearing shed, as woolgrower Stuart Le Lievre knows all too well. Why upgrade, what’re the advantages of a new shed and what information is out there to help? Stuart shares his experience.

Lambing is a critical time for all sheep enterprises across Australia. Tim Leeming, who knows lambing to be a ‘game of 1 percenters,’ outlines how he gets great results from his precision system.

An area where more than 85% of Australian wool is sold to. From China, to Japan, Korea, and India to some surprising places where wool is making inroads. We hear from AWI’s Eastern Hemisphere General Manager John Roberts and AWI’s Country Manager in Japan Samuel Cockedey

How do you demonstrate to a global audience, that wool is good for human skin and for the environment? Through credible scientific evidence; that is, wool fibre science. Hear from AWI’s Angus Ireland on how new market opportunities are opening and how the hurdles for wool are being addressed through scientific research of the wool fibre.

The Merino Lifetime Productivity (MLP) Project has reached its halfway mark, so what does that mean for the commercial and stud breeders of Australia’s wool industry? Plus, the crucial role that sire evaluation and link sires play in the marathon MLP Project, is explained by Ben Swain of the Australian Merino Sire Evaluation Association (AMSEA).

Months after a nation-wide lockdown, Italy is easing restrictions. But are the Italian wool mills running and is there consumer demand for wool in Europe? Italy Country Manager for Woolmark, Francesco Magri, explains. Additionally, we speak to Russell Pattinson about the Australian Wool Production Forecasting Committee’s latest forecast of shorn wool production.

After years of drought, putting stock back onto precious green feed after drought/containment has many potentially expensive pitfalls. Hear Dr Jillian Kelly speak about the do’s and dont’s of this crucial exercise.

On farm trials of new solar ear tags are delivering enormous amounts of data to build systems to monitor and manage sheep like never before. This ground-breaking research is opening up new areas of knowledge for sheep and flock behaviour.

From developing the outback to leading the wool industry and agriculture through some of its most difficult days. Ian McLachlan AO was at the forefront of wool for many years but has never seen the future look so bright. Hear why.

Wild dogs are relentless; they decimate livestock, destroy wildlife, damage regional economies and spread diseases. How do you manage this problem? With a plan, a National Wild Dog Action Plan (NWDAP). Hear from industry about what the NWDAP is, why it evolved, and how it helps restore communities, livestock and native animal populations across Australia.

Hear how shearing teams around Australia are managing and coping through COVID-19 restrictions. The restrictions and loss of overseas workers is actually opening up important opportunities.

The wool industry has accumulated decades of skills and knowledge, so how are we passing this information down to the next generation? Two education initiatives, Hay Inc and the Peter Westblade Scholarship, speak to us about how their programs support young people in wool.

In these very difficult days, we hear the very latest from the largest processor and buyer of Australian wool: China. Lizzie Chen has been importing Australian wool on behalf of large Chinese mills since the 1990s.

With so much to complement each other how have so many sheep left what was the sheep/wheat zone? Will they come back and how? We head to WA to find out the opportunities and the appetite.

What will the current and future implications of Coronavirus (COVID-19) be for the Australian wool industry and its consumers? As the outbreak becomes a pandemic, AWI’s CEO Stuart McCullough shares his insight and rates the threat that COVID-19 could present to the wool supply chain.

Maggot and blowfly samples, fly genome sequencing, trialing vaccines: are all essential parts of AWI’s current flystrike prevention program to research the Australian blowfly and project flystrike control to the next level. Hear the latest research update into flystrike R&D from AWI’s GM of Research, Dr Jane Littlejohn, to tackle this problem, which has always been and still is a huge detrimen...

How do feral species respond to bushfire and drought, and can we use these dire circumstances to our advantage in controlling feral populations? Whether you’ve got wild dogs, foxes, goats, cats, rabbits, pigs or others, hear from NSW Department of Primary Industries’ Peter Fleming about practical control measures and research programs occurring to reduce ferals’ impact on your livestock enterprise...

Where and how do you start again after a bushfire? We head to the famous woolgrowing region of Kangaroo island where the scars are still raw but the spirit is still high. This young and motivated wool community is ready to start rebuilding after a horror summer despite one massive hindrance; the sea. Hear how KI is approaching a massive rebuild and why it will all be worthwhile.