Since wool is a natural protein, it can be attacked by moths, beetles and other pests. The sheep will be either receive injections of insecticides, or become be subjected to a bath that includes pesticides. If sheep’s are not treated it can lead to an uncomfortably well-being, which can spread throughout the flock. The chemicals used can harm both humans and rivers, and also the sheep. Previously phosphate agents for scabies were used in the chemical treatment, which has been shown to produce nerve damage in humans. Cypermethrin is less of a health hazard to humans but is 1,000 times more hazardous to aquatic life and water.
Two kinds of antibiotics are authorized to put in the food of sheep’s in order to enhance their growth. These enable the sheep’s to grows slightly faster and can compensate for the loss that occurs because of unsanitary conditions in consequence of overcrowding. Antibiotics used in agriculture end up in the groundwater and later also in the local areas drinking water. This increases the risk of resistivity of antibiotics in humans. In almost all countries, including Sweden wool is treated as a secondary product, it is the flesh of sheep’s that provides most profit. Sheep are therefore rarely bred for their wool and this means that the wool is coarse and the quality is worse than it could be. The conditions for sheep farming in Sweden is good compared to other countries and since the climate is cool and that there are large grazing areas that does not and allow parasites to spread. The Swedish sheep are bred for their meat and the wool is usually thrown away since there is no demand for it. Wool from Swedish sheep is too coarse for use in thin garments, but has several other advantages. Shades of brown, gray and black that occurs in sheep in Sweden are rare, and outside Sweden these shades are only naturally found in alpaca. Wool from our Swedish white sheep is unusually shiny and resembles mohair. Australian merino sheep are bred for their wool in contrast to most other sheep. A single sheep can produce up to 5 kg of wool with high quality. They are being bred to produce as much wool as possible and this has led to that they have excess skin around your the neck. The extra skin folds and attracts pests, which means that more treatment against insect infestation is needed.
In 2005, the demand for clean wool was 1.23 million tons, which represents about 2% of all textile fibers. Demand has remained at a fairly steady figure for many years, as compared to polyester, which has doubled in the past 15 years. Wool is a good fiber considering energy, since it only takes less than 10MJ of energy per kg. The acrylic fibers require more than 100 MJ per kg. However, the amount of water required is about the same. On 1 hectare of land, you get about 62 kg wool, compared to the cultivation of hemp that provides about 1200-2000 kg of fiber on the same amount of land.
==Modified wool==