News

From mid-April, the market for crossbred wools increased appreciably in both the North and South Islands. Foreign exchange has been the main factor driving this, with the New Zealand dollar at one point dropping below US$0.63. Demand for better quality wools, with good colour and sound preparation...

An interactive educational opportunity for students might be the way to help New Zealand with its growing wool crisis. The Wool In Schools programme works with primary, intermediate, and secondary schools. Schools can register for The Wool Shed, filled with interactive tools to educate kids on wool...

Bale contamination is an ongoing issue that can cause significant downstream processing problems. We wish to provide growers, shearing contractors, and wool handlers with a timely reminder to be vigilant in the woolshed. The photo attached to this article has been supplied by WoolWorks New Zealand...

As many wool growers should now be fully aware, the wool sector is a member of the New Zealand Farm Assurance Programme (NZFAP) , which has recently refreshed its logo. For PGG Wrightson to market your wool as NZFAP assured, it is essential for growers to know their Assurance Code (e.g. 1000XYZ) /...

PGG Wrightson Wool Otago representative Graeme Bell recently attended the New Zealand Wool Classers Association’s AGM in Mosgiel, which doubled as a Classer Professional Development Day. Included in the association’s annual Classer Awards, PGG Wrightson Wool is the sponsor of the Owner Classer...

Like all farmers, wool growers will always look at options to increase productivity through innovation. With the wool market in a low return phase of its cycle, for some, that possible innovation includes saving money on crutching, dagging and shearing by shifting towards self-shedding breeds...

Tara Marshall has been in wool all her life, and then some. She grew up on her grandfather’s 1000 hectare farm in Ohura, north of Taumarunui. Tara started working in shearing gangs at the age of 17, which she did for a couple of years before heading to Hamilton and a year in the SkyCity cashier...

Certified organic wool growers have an opportunity to maximise returns as PGG Wrightson Wool’s international marketing arm Bloch & Behrens seeks wool for exclusive supply to a leading American bedding manufacturer. Having established a lucrative market for Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)...

Californian style is a particular tradition in the western riding scene, not to be mistaken for Texan style. The Californian style goes back centuries, woven into Spanish culture and history, and influenced by Morocco. With Californian style, the connection between horse and rider is key. A mecate...

As we progress towards pre-lamb shearing in the coming months, growers need to prepare to minimise VM in the wool they are set to consign. There are two different classes of VM contaminant: most, the likes of hay, manuka leaf, and grass seed, which is relatively easy to remove, washing out of the...

Gray and Valmai Robertson bought Blackmount Station, 65 kilometres south of Te Anau, in 1963. As they settled in, Gray would regularly suggest to Valmai that their location, on the turn-off to Lake Monowai in the foothills of the Takitimu Mountains, was the perfect spot for tea rooms or a cafeteria...

Working with one of the world's leading fashion brands, PGG Wrightson Wool's' international marketing arm Bloch & Behrens has created a rewarding opportunity for merino and half-bred wool growers. General manager of Bloch & Behrens, Palle Petersen, explains: "Establishing a rewarding relationship...

Jamie Mackay from The Country has just had his monthly catch-up with Grant Edwards from PGG Wrightson Wool to see how the market is faring. As an aside, Mackay offered hearty congratulations to PGG Wrightson for forty years of support for the IHC Calf and Rural Scheme. Edwards agreed that it was a...

Grower advice: Take care to avoid being penalised for over-weight bales. For safety and efficiency, industry standards require that over-weight bales must be reduced. Excess wool will be re-packed into lighter-weight bales within the same line. In the case of several over-weight bales within a...

Grower warning: Do not consign wool in ‘Econopack’ labelled bales. Over the past two years, a line of new wool packs sold to farmers across the country proved unfit for purpose. Although these packs have been banned within the supply chain, they are again appearing in wool stores, likely out of...

Fitness and the great outdoors combine Dave Burridge's passion for adventure racing. During working hours, Dave Burridge is South Island Auction Manager for PGG Wrightson Wool, overseeing all the details for every fortnightly wool auction held in Christchurch. Outside the auction room, Dave is a...

Considering covid wiped out the majority of this season’s overall shearing competitions, to complete the National Shearing Circuit, over five qualifying rounds and a final was exceptional. Starting in early October in Alexandra, the multi-breed event had competitors on fine wool at the New Zealand...

Steve Ashman and Greer Reeves farm in the Pehiri district on a 376 hectare Gisborne hill country block. They bought the farm from Steve's parents in 2017, saving for it by wool handling, shepherding in Tolaga Bay, mustering and shearing, including in Scotland, Sardinia, and Sicily, the heart of...