30 merino growers recently congregated in Christchurch for a full day grower supplier meeting with Norwegian outdoor clothing company - Devold. They were joined by PGG Wrightson representatives for a live video conference linking the growers with Devold senior management and various other business partners in countries such as Germany and Canada.

Devold Chief Executive Cathrine Strange provided growers with insights and plans going forward, however one of the most pleasing aspects was hearing Devold sales have rebounded quicker than expected from COVID-19, to a point where sales in 2020 are higher than last year. Added to this, Devold are forecasting substantial growth as they aim to take their household name in Norway to the world, which will include NZ, Australia, and Russia to name a few. Devold’s new strategy of being a global premium brand has started, and they announced their new brand vision as being “Devold - Outdoor Wool Expert”.

Devold predominantly source all their merino wool from NZ because it is the best quality and every kg is fully traceable back to the farmer suppliers. Cathrine believes that having their own state of the art manufacturing facility in Lithuania which is currently producing 30,000 garments per week is a key point of difference to their competitors.

“Now into their third year of the fully traceable sheep to shop programme, the resulting quality improvements and sale volumes speak for themselves,” said Cathrine.

One of the key themes of the day was to help educate and inform growers of a key Devold quality criteria, being staple strength, so PGG Wrightson’s Animal Health and Nutritionist expert Laura Pattie was on hand to provide guidance in this area. Laura gave growers insights from her professional background to help farmers understand the factors that affect staple strength. Genetics, environmental conditions, nutrition and crop feeds all play their part and growers were provided plenty of food for thought as they plan for the future.

NZ Wool Testing Authority Chief Executive Duane Knowles was also in attendance. He provided growers with insights to objective measurements for wool. The growers appreciated Duane’s very informative presentation, and his openness and willingness to share information resonated very well with the growers in attendance.