The Yarn

As predators, wild dogs cost the Australian economy up to $100 million annually in lost production and control costs, not to mention the enormous stress they cause wool and sheep producers. AWI’s activities follow the National Wild Dog Action Plan, enabling communities to coordinate effective and humane management of wild dogs. Tracey Kreplins, Research Scientist, Invasive Species, WA DPIRD spoke...

Demographer, author and business adviser Bernard Salt AM has a challenge for Australian agribusiness as the pandemic wanes: reset and create a big Australian agribusiness on the global stage. Why don’t we have one already given the expertise and resources at our disposal. With an optimistic view of the future, particularly for regional Australia and the industries that drive it, like wool, Bernard...

As the Australian wool industry’s research, development and marketing body, AWI annually reports on its progress and the global operating environment for wool. This episode draws on the main presentations from the 2022 Annual General Meeting, including Chairman Jock Laurie, CEO John Roberts as well as research and marketing General Managers Dr Jane Littlejohn and Laura Armstrong.

Only 5% of the entire Australian wool clip can be processed domestically, leaving the wool industry vulnerable. WoolProducers Australia has just released “Ensuring a sustainable future for Australia’s wool supply chain” a comprehensive report into this very issue. Hear WPA General Manager Adam Dawes talk through the report and where this important issue heads from here.

With so much international uncertainty, what does one of Australia’s largest brokers, exporters and processors think of wool’s future? Jamie Lillie, General Manager of Fox and Lillie exports is upbeat about the current state of the wool industry and its prospects for various reasons, despite all the gloom around interest rates, inflation and conflict globally.

As the very first Australian Woolmark licensee and selling quality woollen garments since 1914, Sportscraft holds a special place in the Australian retail landscape. What trends are appearing for wool consumption? What do people want from wool? Hear what this iconic retailer has to say about the future of wool and the people that ultimately buy it.

The Merino Lifetime Productivity (MLP) project is the world’s largest Merino experiment, tracking the lifetime performance of 5,700 ewes as they proceed through four to five joinings and annual shearings at five sites across the country. We are now starting to get some fascinating results which are uncovering some of the mysteries of Merino genetics. Hear from Ben Swain (AMSEA) as well as MerinoLi...

PIRSA in South Australia have developed an augmented reality App for smartphones to help identify exotic animal diseases such as Foot and Mouth disease. Hear how it works and its significant benefits.

Who would have thought the concept of “exploring better ways to carry” would lead to Merino farms? Well of course it does because when packing for a trip, is there anything better than Merino? Hear from cult figure Taylor Welden as he discusses his love of Merino wool and his day out discovering how it is grown, harvested and sold.

Young woolgrower Katherine Bain speaks with AWI GM Research, Jane Littlejohn about the family woolgrowing enterprise, her hopes for the future and we learn of two new wool marketing campaigns.

Without the trust of the customer there is no industry. Demonstration of sustainable production of sheep meat and wool is critical to secure access to local and global markets. Sarah Hyland is the manager of the sheep sustainability framework and explains it perfectly. We also check in on the health of the sheep industry in SA at the GrowingSA conference near Adelaide with LivestockSA president Jo...

In South Australia, New South Wales and Western Australia, highly popular school wether competitions are run by the state Stud Merino Breeders Association. These events introduce young people to the sheep and wool industry. Hear from co-ordinator Ben Watts and Brooke Cowan from Gunnedah High School after the successful NSW event which involved 62 schools and over 500 students.

Is it the only commercial knitting machine on farm anywhere in Australia? Woolgrower Sue McClure of Killmaille in western Victoria is making her dream a reality but it’s taken a lifetime of work to get there.

The threat of Foot and Mouth Disease entering Australia is real and highly concerning for everyone involved with all livestock industries. WoolProducers Australia plays a key role if the disease does reach Australia’s shores, hear what president Ed Storey has to say about the strong measures to keep it out, what individuals can do to protect their flocks as well as the policies and procedures if i...

The key textile trade show Premiere Vision was held in Paris for the first time since the advent of the pandemic. The strong focus on sustainability, innovation and versatility has been another great opportunity for wool. Hear from the Woolmark Company’s Western Hemisphere Manager Damien Pommeret fresh from Premiere Vision.

Join Andrew Henderson chair of SAFEMEAT who discusses in detail how the industry is protected, what you can do to help protect the industry, what happens if the disease is found in Australia and the sheep and wool ramifications. In May 2018 the National Biosecurity Committee (NBC) tasked SAFEMEAT with developing a range of reform recommendations to enhance the existing national livestock traceabil...

Hear from Thomas Elder Market analysts Matt Dalgleish and Andrew Whitelaw about the drivers of the wool market at the 2022 WAFarmers conference at MURESK and hear from WAF president and woolgrower John Hassel about why the future looks bright for the natural fibre.

Alistair Lade has been producing paddock-based superfine wool from his family’s property for many decades. It has taken dedication across many areas of the business: genetics, pasture, environment, electronic ID, plus no shortage of hard work. However, the hard work is paying off: hear from this superfine wool master.

Join General Manager, Research at AWI, Dr Jane Littlejohn who talks to Emily King about a new opportunity for biological defleecing using the zein class of protein. It allows for the wool production to be weakened but not completely stopped, thus keeping the wool on the sheep to be harvested in potentially new and more automated way. Jane also discusses the suite of research work at AWI.

Worm control in sheep has become a major issue and the spread and frequency of Barber’s pole worm in flocks is alarming. A parasite that rewrites the books for control and the world champion in terms of resistance according to those who know and we are about to hear from three of them.

Hear about the suite of research and development for wool harvesting recently shown near Conargo in the Riverina of NSW.

All industries have issues and wool has global processing and harvesting as top of its list. Hear what the AWI Board has to say on these and head to WA where the industry is taking important steps to help solve the current wool harvesting crisis.

With the world in such uncertain times, it is nice to know that at least the national flock and national wool clips are steadily lifting. New Australian Wool Production Forecasting Committee Chairman Stephen Hill explains the latest figures but gives valuable insight into the strong underlying demand for Australian wool despite the headwinds of ongoing COVID lockdowns in China, significant logisti...

Finding production efficiency through internal rather than external investment is well worth exploring when interest rates are expected to rise. John Francis from Agrista consulting discusses the options from the Leading Sheep Meat Up Forum in Longreach Qld. We hear also about the shearer shortage and the potential Blackall wool scour from mayor and woolgrower Andrew Martin.

Field Days are back in real life! Hear from world champion shearers and shearer trainers about the latest catch and deliver technology shown for the first time in public. Rex Hocking, yard dog champion and woolgrower discusses the importance of field days to the Lucindale community.