Wool

Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including goats, rabbits, sheep and camels. Wool fibre has inherent sustainability attributes. It is a renewable, natural fibre that can be used as a viable alternative to synthetic fabrics.

Benefits

WOOL TYPES AND CHARACTERISTICS

	MERINO	CASHMERE	MOHAIR	CAMEL	ANGORA
Bilder
Microns	18-20	14-19	23-45	16-20	14-16
Source & exclusivity	Sheep; common	Cashmere goat; common	Angora goat; common	Two-humped Bactrian camel; rare	Angora rabbit; limited producers
Major producers	Australia, China, New Zealand, Iran, Argentina, UK	India, Mongolia, China	South Africa, United States	Mongolia, China	China, Europe, Chile, United States
Fibre collection	Shearing	Combing or Shearing	Shearing (twice annually)	Combed, shorn or collected during the 6-8 weeks moulting season	Hair removed every 3 months by shearing or gentle plucking
Cost	Low–moderate	High–luxury fibre	High	High–luxury fibre	High–luxury fibre
Blends well with	Natural and synthetic fibres	Wool and nylon (for knitwear)	Wool	Cashmere, wool, nylon (to make it more economical for manufacturer to produce)	Wool (to increase warmth and enhance softness)
End use	Outerwear, knitwear, activewear, durable upholstery	Knitwear, babywear, blazers, coats, underwear, sleepwear, rugs, carpets	Clothing, rugs, carpets, blankets, durable upholstery	Knitwear garments, coats, suits, blazers, jackets, gloves, hats, scarves	Luxury undergarments, underwear, thermal base layers, scarves, sportswear, sweaters
Natural colours	White, brown, grey, charcoal, black	White, grey, brown, red, yellow, almond, apricot	Blacks, greys, silvers, reds, apricots, copper	Golden tan, red to light brown	Black, blue, chocolate, brown, greys, white, reds
Consumer care & washing	Hand-washable	Dry-clean	Dry-clean	Dry-clean	Hand-washable

Optimize sustainability benefits

OPPORTUNITY	BENEFITS	CONSIDERATIONS
Know the difference between natural bamboo linen fabric, and bamboo made from a viscose process.		Bamboo viscose is chemically processed and has greater pollution impacts to water and air.
Promote the use of linen from bamboo products.	Once the fibre is extracted from the stem, processing bamboo into yarn for linen is largely mechanical, with minimal environmental impact.
Promote the use of ozone bleaching processes to strip out the natural beige colour of linen (from flax). Promote the particular aesthetic of ozone bleach effects.	Ozone can used be with no water at all.	Ozone has limited availability, and is relatively expensive since it requires investment in ozone generating equipment. Ozone processes produce a different aesthetic than chlorine derivative or permanganate bleaching.