Sheep’s Wool

By Jiya, Kanika, Priyal, Sairaj

Topic-Wool
Intro

Life Cycle + How It’s made

Uses and Applications

Origins (Prehistoric Start)

Development (Boom of Agriculture and Society)

Industrial Revolution (Mechanisation)

Wool’s Timeline

Modern Significance and Nuance

Environmental Impact

Modern Alternatives as Solutions

Case Study

Bibliogaphy
Introduction
Sheep are domestic animals raised on farms for their wool, meat and milk. Along with goats, pigs
and cattle, sheep were among the first animals to be domesticated. Wool sheep are classified as
Ovis aries aries. Merino, Rambouillet, Blue Faced Leicester, and Corriedale breeds are among the
best-known wool sheep. Some sheep breeds are raised for their meat, others for their wool, others
for both. The Texel and Dorset breeds are good choices for meat production. But there are literally
hundreds of sheep breeds.
Life Cycle + How It’s Made
How It's Made Wool - YouTube
 Uses and Applications
Wool is extensively used in textile applications where comfort and
aesthetics are important. Some uses and application of wool fibre are given
below –

- Wool fibre used for clothing, blankets, insulation and upholstery.

- It is used in men’s and women’s apparel, outerwear and cold weather
clothing, suits, blankets, felts and carpeting.
- It is often used in blends with cellulosic and man-made fibres.
- It is also used for absorb noise of heavy machinery and stereo
speakers.
- As an animal protein wool, can be used as a soil fertilizers, being a
slow release source of nitrogen.
- In the home furnishing area, the major use of wool is in carpets and
rugs where wool is used more, cover to the carpets and warm in the
rugs.
History Origins (Prehistoric Start)
Like human civilization, the story of wool begins in Asia Minor during the Stone Age about 10,000 years ago. Primitive man living in the
Mesopotamian Plain used sheep for three basic human needs: food, clothing and shelter, Wool being highly valued for its warmth in
days gone and in modern times as well. Sheep are descended from mouflon, thought to be the ancestor of all modern day sheep.

Sheep were likely one of the first herd based animals to be domesticated, due in part to their smaller stature than cattle, and including
their lessened threat of aggressiveness due to this size. As such, sheep were first likely herded and freely breed. Only after we began
to selectively breed them to produce greater yields off milk, wool, and meat, and inversely lesser aggression, horn size, and
threat-percieveness, would we begin to see variations in coat patterns, indicating the first signs of true domestication. This was only
possible-in part, due to the on-going and thus far already ⅔ complete, domestication of dogs, which enabled us to have better control
over the herds of sheep, much the same way modern farmers use specific breeds of dogs to herd cattle, descended from dogs who
first showed a greater propensity for these traits in those early days.

Later on man learned to spin and weave. As primitive as they must have been, woolens became part of the riches of Babylon.The
warmth of wool clothing and the mobility of sheep allowed mankind to spread civilization far beyond the warm climate of Mesopotamia.
 Development (Boom of Agriculture and Society)
Between 3000 and 1000 BC the Persians, Greeks and Romans distributed sheep and wool throughout Europe as they continued to
improve breeds. The Romans took sheep everywhere as they built their Empire in what is now Spain, North Africa, and on the British
Isles. They established a wool plant in what is now Winchester, England as early as 50 AD. The Saracens, nomadic people of the
Syrian-Arabian deserts, conquered Spain in the eighth century and established a widespread wool export trade with North Africa,
Greece, Egypt and Constantinople.

During the twelfth century, weaving in Florence, Genoa and Venice was stimulated by the Norman conquest of Greece. The
conquerors sent about a hundred Greek weavers to Palermo as slaves, and their extraordinary work was copied at once by Italian
weavers.

Back in Spain a thriving wool trade helped finance the voyages of Columbus and the Conquistadores. Guarding its wealth closely,
Spain levied the death penalty on anyone exporting sheep until 1786. That year King Louis XVI imported 386 Merino ewes to cross
with sheep on his estate at Rambouillet in Northern France. The resulting Rambouillet breed is highly desirable today because of its
fine and long-staple wool.

The English textile trade grew during the 15th century, to the point where export of wool was discouraged. Over the centuries, various
British laws controlled the wool trade or required the use of wool even in burials.
Just like Spain, England froze its borders to raw wool exports. In 1377, England’s King Edward III, “the royal wool merchant,” stopped
woven-goods imports and the domestic weaving of foreign wools and invited Flemish weavers fleeing the Spanish invasion to settle in
England where the industry thrived. By 1660 wool textile exports were two-thirds of England’s foreign commerce.

After the Restoration, fine English woolens began to compete with silks in the international market, partly aided by the Navigation Acts;
in 1699, the English crown forbade its American colonies to trade wool with anyone but England herself. A great deal of the value of
woolen textiles was in the dyeing and finishing of the woven product. In each of the centers of the textile trade, the manufacturing
process came to be subdivided into a collection of trades, overseen by an entrepreneur in a system called by the English the
"putting-out" system, or "cottage industry", and the Verlagssystem by the Germans. In this system of producing wool cloth, once
perpetuated in the production of Harris tweeds, the entrepreneur provides the raw materials and an advance, the remainder being paid
upon delivery of the product. The sheepwalks of Castile were controlled by the Mesta union of sheep owners. They shaped the
landscape and the fortunes of the meseta that lies in the heart of the Iberian peninsula; in the 16th century, a unified Spain allowed
export of Merino lambs only with royal permission.
Industrial Revolution (Mechanisation)
The industrial revolution started in Great Britain in the mid-1700s. Technology advancements lead to a boom in textile
production and rapid industrial growth. Before the start of the Industrial Revolution, cloth was made on a small scale and
mostly at home. Whole families participated in making clothes, from tending sheep to spinning yarn, weaving cloth, and
sewing. The process was very slow. Each step was done by hand using specialized tools. Improved machinery allowed
factories create finished fabric much more quickly. Power looms for weaving wool were in heavy use by 1841 and significantly
reduced the cost of wool cloth. By the middle of the century, families no longer had to spend time spinning and weaving. The
textile mills and factories provided a wide, affordable variety of textile products. For many decades the industry prospered.
The factories were an important source of jobs. People moved from farms to growing towns and cities to work in the factories
and the many support businesses that grew up around them. Today, wool clothing and accessories are still very popular.
Most retailers and manufacturers produce these items using a blend of wool and other fibers to make a less expensive
product. But, the industrial revolution completely changed the way people work and live. The commercial and economic
systems created by the industrial revolution live on today.
Wool Timeline
● Sheep Domestication Start: 10,000+ years ago
● Wool High Trade(Boom in connectivity): 3000-5000 years ago
● Wool Export Bans(European values rise): 900-1000 years ago
● Wool Trade Decline(Losing competition to other materials)
: 500-600 years ago
● Wool Boom(Industrial Revolution): 300 years ago
● Wool High: Current market all time high, challenged due to
wool’s ethical, environmental, and health hazards, other
threads(more sustainalbe) now challenge wool’s dominance
Modern Significance and Nuance
In modern times, although sheep’s wool has been accepted as a standard mode of clothing, at least in the West, it has been brought down in recent
years with a severe degree of criticism. Primarily in regards to the husbandry of the sheep who produce the wool in question. These sheep from the first
day of birth, have their tails cut off, without anesthesia, to prevent fly strike caused by feces hanging from the wool on their rears that they would naturally
be shed in the summer months.

And for 5-6 years at best, regularly be slammed to the ground and have their wool sheared off. Shearers, payed by the kilo and not the hour, are thus
incentivized to shear as much as possible, leading to many lacerations and cuts on the sheep, causing severe bleeding, and the wounds stitched on site
without veterinary supervision, on the job, without anesthesia. Females are artificially inseminated by being tied up and having a syringed poked into
their reproductive areas, releasing the semen. And often, once the sheep pass their prime production capacity, are shipped off the be slaughtered for
meat and leather, each step of the process more stressful and horrifying than the last.

In addition, wool’s importance has shifted from being a valued source of warmth, to a status symbol of luxury, such as cashmere, a highly sought after, yet
very expensive, form of wool.
Environmental Impact
Wool causes huge emissions in Greenhouse gasses, such as methane, because the livestock are ruminants, and as
such, release lots of these gasses every day into the atmosphere. Wool is 5th worst in terms of GHG emissions,
compared to other forms of fabric, ever surpassing synthetic fabrics!!!

Wool farming causes deforestation in order to clear land for sheep, so the image of sheep playing in beautiful green
pastures were once acres and acres of old growth forest, as 71% of the UK’s land, for example, is used for farming.
Old forests, turned barren green plains. Also resulting in wildlife culls, such as Kangaroos in Australia, considered as
pests. Alongside desertification, where the sheep leave the grazed land barren and unusable to themselves or the
native wildlife trying to overtake the waste lands.

Wool farming uses pesticides to protect sheep, which are washed into the ecosystem killing off native insect life,
poisoning the food chain.
Modern Alternatives as Solutions
1) Hemp: Hemp fabric is highly breathable and suitable even for sensitive skin. Due to its
insulation properties, hemp keeps the body warm and cosy during winter. In addition,
growing hemp requires fewer resources which makes it a sustainable choice.

2) Tencel: Production of Tencel does not use harmful chemicals which makes it
environmentally sustainable. Tencel has incredible absorption capacity and breathability
making it perfect choice for winter wear.

3) Bamboo: Bamboo has hypoallergenic and antimicrobial properties making it suitable for
all skin types. Bamboo fibres are cooler in summer and retain heat in winter.

4) Soybean fibre: Soybean fibre is human invented plant based protein fibre derived from
by-products of soybeans. Soybean fibre is highly sustainable and an extremely sturdy
textile material.

5) Linen: Another fabric that is extremely breathable and absorbent with insulative
qualities is Linen. Linen is mostly known as a summer material. However, surprisingly, it
can also be worn to keep warm in winters.
Case Study
Pulse of The Fashion Industry 2017

Pulse of the Fashion Industry 2017 - Global Fashion Agenda

The Pulse of The Fashion Industry is, usually, a yearly report provided by The Global Fashion Agenda, is
a company which is part of a group to secure global alignment, support each other and pool resources
to secure maximum impact. Commitment signatories consist of fashion companies that sign a Global
Fashion Agenda commitment focusing on a specific topic.

The Pulse Report is generally a score of how the fashion industry has fared in terms of achieving better
environmental and social goals. During the 2017 report, the fashion industry scored poorly, a 32 out of
100.

As noted, wool has been found to be one of the worst environmentally degrading apparel material
noted, contrary to the images of sheep frollicking in lush green pastures, clearly a marketing gimmick
intro tricking consumers that their wool’s production, from birth to processing, is environmentally
friendly.

Unfortunately the only other case study we could find was one in regards where a “Scottish study of
795 sheep-dip facilities found that 40% presented a pollution risk.” Sheep-dips being an insecticide and
fungicide applied on sheep in order to protect them from said forms of diseases, because it is not
profitable otherwise. However I could not find this study available anymore online, nor could find no
other study of similar in regards to the wool from sheep and their environmental impact.

However this study alone is good enough to provide an important insight into the true nature of not just
wool but also of other materials traditionally considered and marketed as environmentally friendly.
National and international policies for wool

Introduction
Wool has long been accepted as an environmentally
positive fibre choice with a number of benefits, such as
being 100% natural, renewable, biodegradable and
recyclable. Not to mention that it is thermo-regulating,
easy to care for, and can be repaired and enjoyed for
years and years.
Sustainable wool production relates to methods that may
be certified as organic, or that adhere to high animal
welfare standards and best practice in land management.
National policies
AGENCY: Government of India

ACTION: Endowed as the Indian Textile Industry is with

multifaceted advantages, it shall be the policy of the
Government to develop a strong and vibrant industry that can

• Produce cloth of good quality at acceptable prices to meet

the growing needs of the people;

• Increasingly contribute to the provision of sustainable

employment and the economic growth of the nation; and

• Compete with confidence for an increasing share of the global

market.
The objectives of the policy are to-

• Facilitate the Textile Industry to attain and sustain a pre-eminent global standing in the
manufacture and export of clothing;

• Equip the Industry to withstand pressures of import penetration and maintain a dominant
presence in the domestic market;

• Liberalise controls and regulations so that the different segments of the textile industry are
enabled to perform in a greater competitive environment;

• Enable the industry to build world class state-of-the-art manufacturing capabilities in

conformity with environmental standards, and for this purpose to encourage both Foreign
Direct Investment as well as research and development in the sector;

• Develop a strong multi-fibre base with thrust of product upgradation and diversification;

• Sustain and strengthen the traditional knowledge, skills and capabilities of our weavers and
craftspeople;
• Enrich human resource skills and capabilities, with special emphasis on those working in the
decentralised sectors of the Industry; and for this purpose to revitalise the Institutional
structure;

• Expand productive employment by enabling the growth of the industry, with particular effort
directed to enhancing the benefits to the north east region;

• Make Information Technology (IT), an integral part of the entire value chain of textile
production and thereby facilitate the industry to achieve international standards in terms of
quality, design and marketing and;

• Involve and ensure the active cooperation and partnership of the State Governments,
Financial Institutions, Entrepreneurs, Farmers and NonGovernmental Organisations in the
fulfillment of these objectives.
AGENCY: Ministry of textiles, India

To develop the wool sector of India, the Ministry of Textiles

formulated an Integrated Wool Development Programme
(IWDP).

ACTION: This scheme is formulated to improve the country's

competitiveness and quality of woolen products. Under IWDP,
the ministry has allocated Rs. 126 crore (US$ 1.66 million) as a
part of a five year plan (i.e 2021-22 to 2025-26). This scheme
aims to harmonize the wool supply chain, link the wool industry
and producers and provide a marketing platform to the smaller
woolen products manufacturers in India. Through this scheme,
the Ministry of Textiles aims to improve the quality of woolen
products by increasing wool testing, improve the tools available
for manufacturing and providing skill development and capacity
building capabilities to the hand-made manufacturers.
International Policies
AGENCY:
Federal Trade Commission.
ACTION:
Notice of proposed rulemaking
Based on comments received in response to its Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the
Federal Trade Commission (the “Commission” or “FTC”) proposes amending its rules and
regulations under the Wool Products Labeling Act of 1939 (“Wool Rules” or “Rules”) to:
conform to the requirements of the Wool Suit Fabric Labeling Fairness and International
Standards Conforming Act, which revised the labeling requirements for cashmere and certain
other wool products; and align with the proposed amended rules and regulations under the
Textile Fiber Products Identification Act (“Textile Rules”). The Commission seeks comment on
these proposals and several other issues.
The comments from industry trade associations focused on harmonizing the Wool Rules with
international labeling requirements. The AAFA noted that “lack of harmonization . . . forces
products destined for multiple locations to contain a superfluous amount of information,”
which makes labeled clothing costly for manufacturers, and “confusing for consumers and
uncomfortable to wear.”

The record shows support for the Wool Rules from the textile industry and consumers. Among
other things, these commenters stated the Rules benefit both businesses and consumers  and
help consumers make informed purchasing decisions based on truthful information.

Indeed, no commenter opposed the Rules. There is no evidence that the Rules impose
excessive costs on industry, including small businesses, or that the required disclosures are
not important or material to consumers. On the basis of this record, the Commission
concludes that a continuing need exists for the Wool Rules and that the public interest clearly
requires retention of the Rules. Moreover, the Act directs the Commission to issue rules for
the disclosure of information required by the Act.
Although the record supports retaining the Rules, it, along with the Commission's experience,
supports modifying or clarifying a number of sections. In particular, the Wool Rules should reflect the
Wool Act as amended in 2006 by the Conforming Act and align with the proposed amended Textile
Rules.

Accordingly, the Commission proposes amending the Rules regarding fiber content disclosures,
country-of-origin disclosures, and wool guaranties. In addition, as described below, the Wool Rules
incorporate four provisions of the Textile Rules that the Commission has recently proposed
amending, and thus would automatically incorporate any Textile Rules amendments the Commission
adopts.
AGENCY: Textile Exchange

ACTION: The Responsible Wool Standard

The Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) is an international, voluntary standard that addresses animal welfare in
sheep farms and chain of custody of wool from certified farms to the final product. The goals of the Responsible
Wool Standard are to provide the industry with the best possible tools to:

• Recognize the best practices of farmers;

• Ensure that wool comes from farms with a progressive approach to managing their land, and from sheep that have
been treated responsibly;

• Create an industry benchmark that will drive improvements in animal care and land management and social
welfare where needed; and

• Provide a robust chain of custody system from farm to final product so that consumers are confident that the wool
in the products they choose is truly RWS.

The Responsible Wool Standard is owned and managed by Textile Exchange which is a is a global nonprofit that
creates leaders in the sustainable fiber and materials industry. The organization develops, manages, and promotes
a suite of leading industry standards as well as collects and publishes vital industry data and insights that enable
brands and retailers to measure, manage, and track their use of preferred fiber and materials. 
AGENCY: Australian Wool Exchange Limited (AWEX)

ACTION: SustainaWOOL™ Integrity Scheme

The SustainaWOOL™ scheme is based on 3 main pillars of wool production:

1. Sheep health and wellbeing :

The scheme provides shearers with a definition of standards for the welfare of the sheep ensuring they are
not mulesed or mulesed with pain relief.

2. Farm Management Practices and Facilities :

SustainaWOOL™ also has a definition of minimum standards for farming practices including standards for
health and safety standards for facilities for their sheep

3. Clip Preparation Requirements :

They also have set out requirements for wool preparation for shearers in compliant with the AWEX Standard
and validate that these standards are communicated to all those involved in the supply chain.
Bibliography
https://iwto.org/sheep/

https://www.onlineclothingstudy.com/2021/09/various-uses-of-wool.html?m=1

https://www.hdwool.com/blog/the-many-uses-of-wool

https://voicelessindia.org/vegalog/f/10-cruelty-free-alternatives-to-wool?blogcategory=Veganism

https://mainestatemuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Wool-Water-and-the-Industrial-Revolution-.pdf

https://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article/4295/brief-history-of-sheep-and-wool

https://www.wool.ca/images/uploads/files/care/wool-fact-sheets.pdf

food-farming-stats-release-07apr16.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

The Damaging Environmental Impact of Wool (peta.org.uk)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RE2mhaoUNaE&t=466s

Pulse Of The Fashion Industry Report 2017 | Sustainability (commonobjective.co)

Shear desperation: How can India’s wool sector be revived (downtoearth.org.in)

Wool Manufacturers and Exporters in India - IBEF

https://textileexchange.org/app/uploads/2020/08/RAF-101a-V2.2-Responsible-Wool-Standard.pdf

https://knowledge-hub.circle-lab.com/AfricanCAT/article/9274?n=SustainaWOOL%E2%84%A2-Integrity-Scheme--A-Sustainability-Scheme-to-Make-the-Wool-Indu
stry-Transparent-