The largest global supplier of wool socks in the active outdoor market wants to step up its wool contract with New Zealand merino growers, worth more than $100 million the last nine years. A top executive team from the United States company SmartWool will meet wool farmers at a North Canterbury function centre on Monday reports Stuff.

The company has indicated it will extend orders for New Zealand- grown merino and mid-micron wool in its partnership with The New Zealand Merino Company (NZM) from double-digit growth projected each year for the next three years. SmartWool will go into more detail at the meeting about its increasing demand for 18 to 26 micron wool and give farmers volume and price projections for its wool requirements to meet growing orders.

(more…)

The NZ Merino Company  has announced a strong operating performance for the year,  consolidating its position as the leading marketer of Merino and Mid Micron wool in NZ reports Scoop. Profit before tax for the year was $2.3 million, a lift of $0.4 million on the previous years result, largely resulting from the purchase of the finer-edge of the PGG Wrightson mid micron business, as well as increased contract activity. The result represents a return on average shareholders funds of 33%. Branded contracts continue to underpin NZM’s business providing price protection and certainty for both the company and its grower suppliers. Contract volumes, and in particular branded forward contract volumes, increased significantly during the year.

Chairman John Nichol said “The NZ Merino Company continues to be proactive in recognising the need for innovation and change in the industry and the need for investment in marketing and differentiating our unique product. Our Merino and mid-micron grower clients and our shareholders are now benefiting from the considerable value generated from the company’s approach.” “The financial position of the company is robust and places us in a strong position to work through the current financial environment, while continuing to invest heavily in marketing, research and development, and innovation.”

(more…)

Merino fleece grown by a South Canterbury couple has been judged NZ’s best for the fourth year running by the world’s biggest buyer of fine wools reports The ODT. Sth Canterbury merino farmers Barrie and Yvonne Payne won the Loro Piana Record Bale Award, for the highest price paid for a single bale of super-fine graded wool last year. Italian weaving company Loro Piana paid $2950 per kilogram of 11.8-micron clean merino wool, which would produce enough wool to make about 50 suits.

“It’s quite humbling to be judged the best in New Zealand four years in a row,” Yvonne Payne said. The Paynes had travelled to Beijing, where they would receive their award. The couple ran more than 3000 merino sheep on their 177ha farm, Visulea, at Maungati, South Canterbury. About 1000 of the flock are wethers, or wool-producing castrated males. The couple, who started farming perendales 38 years ago, switched to merinos about 20 years ago and have produced some of NZ’s finest wool . A micron is just one thousandth of a millimetre making Visulea’s merino barely visible to the human eye: an average human hair measures 60 microns in diameter. The Paynes’ merinos live in a purpose-built light, airy shelter designed to reduce the chill to which the sheep are exposed without them having to be kept indoors, and the animals are hand fed twice a day.

Gordie McMaster likes to see a merino with a kind face. It’s one way he can tell if it is worth keeping or not. He is a sheep classer, a rare breed in NZ, and comes across from NSW each year to look over the merino flocks of his 30 clients in the North and South islands. On his advice, the farmers make decisions on what sheep to cull or breed from, on how to better care for them, on what pastures to put them on and on how to market their wool reports the Dom Post. He is Australia’s most well-known classer and his 55 years of service were recognised in the New Year honours with the Medal of the Order of Australia.

In the stockyards at Brian Thompson’s farm near Wanganui, he explains what determines a merino worth keeping. As Mr Thompson’s son Kerry holds a ram firmly by the horns, Mr McMaster strokes its nose. “Feel that,” he says. “It has a soft, kind face – as soft as silk. That tells me the wool will be perfect. The eyes are big and dark and that points to a good temperament.”

(more…)

Elders Primary wool is facilitating direct supply contracts of fine wool with one of China’s largest makers reports the ODT.

The company, along with exporter J. S. Brooksbank, recently hosted a senior manager of the Tianyu Wool Industry company from China, who met C.Otago and Mackenzie Basin merino farmers. Elders Primary wool manager Cedric Bayly said Tianyu used about 25,000 tonnes of merino wool a year and it wanted to establish direct supply contracts with NZ growers.

“China is the largest woollen top producer in the world. To have their top makers banging on our door looking to meet our growers and discuss buying their wool is fantastic.” Normally, the Chinese company bought its wool from Australia, but drought and declining volumes prompted it to take up an offer from J. S. Brooksbank to visit NZ.