Mecardo Analysis - Non-mulesed volumes continue to trend higher

By: "Farm Tender" News
Ag Tech News
Mar 12, 2019
548 views
Share

By Andrew Woods | Source: AWEX.

This article was bought to you by Pepperton Poll Dorset and White Suffolk Studs

A recent article in Sheep Central discussed a German documentary on mulesing in the Australian flock and noted that there seemed some confusion about the proportions of the clip which is declared to have used pain relief. This article looks at the proportions in the Australian clip declared ceased/non-mulesed and to have used pain relief to February.

Wool as a label covers quite a few processing fibres, which in its simplest form runs from superfine Merino through to carpet wool and covers wool used in knitwear and high-end worsted fabrics. When the discussion comes to the proportion of wool declared to be CM-NM (ceased mulesed or non-mulesed), a single overall number is used. In public discussion this is the norm, so the article will begin with the overall proportion and then move on to break the mulesing status up by breed.

Figure 1 shows the proportion of wool declared as ceased mulesed, non-mulsed and to have used pain relief by month for the Australian clip from 2008 through to February 2019. When the three categories are added together they account for 45-48% of the national clip, so nearly half of the clip is covered. Despite the lack of clear, consistent price premiums during the past decade and any firm strategic direction by the wool industry, farmers have once again made some substantial changes to the national clip by action at the grassroots level.

Ad - Pepperton Poll Dorset & White Suffolk Stud at Elmore, Vic. Rams available now, check us out here - Ad

As earlier articles have noted, the proportion of wool declared as ceased mulesed has remained relatively stable at around 2.5% since 2008. The proportions of wool declared as non-mulesed and to have used pain relief have both trended higher in the past decade. Figure 2 shows the monthly proportion of wool declared as non-mulesed through to February. The underlying trend rises up by around 0.9% per year, with the current proportion above trend. Figure 3 shows a similar analysis for wool declared to have had pain relief used. The trend rises at around 2.9% of the clip each year, with the current proportion of the clip around 30%. Both rising trends show an industry which is steadily, and substantially, changing its animal handling practices.

2019-03-12 Wool 1

Finally, Figure 4 breaks the different categories up by breed. It shows the proportion of wool sold by breed during the 12 months to February. Pain relief is dominated by Merino wool, with 29% of the wool sold at auction being Merino and declared to have used pain relief. Another 1.8% of the clip is crossbred wool declared to have used pain relief. Some 6% of the clip is Merino wool declared to be from non-mulesed flocks, with another 1.6% Merino which are declared as ceased mulesed. Some 5.4% of the clip is crossbred wool declared as non-mulesed.

2019-03-12 Wool 3

Key points

* Despite the headlines, the Australian wool industry has a good story to tell with regards to the adoption of pain relief and the growing proportion of wool declared as CM-NM.

* Nearly half of the wool clip sold at auction in the past year has been covered by either CM, NM or Pain Relief.

* The rising trends for the adoption of pain relief and CM-NM evident during the past decade continue.

Ad - Pepperton Poll Dorset & White Suffolk Stud at Elmore, Vic. Rams available now, check us out here - Ad

What does this mean?

Animal rights is an issue for many urban dwellers (whether rightly or wrongly) and because of this, it is an issue for brands selling apparel to this cohort of consumers. Mulesing is neither the beginning nor the end of animal rights debates, but it is an inflammatory one. The good news is that the industry, at the grower level, is adapting to this issue as the trends in this article show. More needs to be made of that story.

www.mecardo.com.au