What price to put on homegrown wool?

I remember a time when the wool from our Ox Mountain sheep was worth a few pound. It would be factored into the small income that came from a sheep flock. Today, however, while sheep still need to be shorn each summer, their wool is now seen as little more than a waste product. After covering the cost of shearing, there is literally nothing left for the farmer.

Yesterday Wild sheep were more hairy than woolly. Sheep were domesticated some 10,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence found that woolly sheep may have begun around 8,000 ago, with the earliest woven wool garments having been dated to 6,000 years ago. The oldest known European wool textile, from about 3,500 years ago, was found preserved in a Danish bog. One information source outlines the progress of wool and its uses from Roman times.

In Roman times, wool, linen, and leather clothed the European population. In medieval times, as trade connections expanded, the Champagne fairs revolved around the production of wool cloth in small centres such as Provins. The network developed by the annual fairs meant the woollens of Provins might find their way to Naples, Sicily, Cyprus, Majorca, Spain, and even Constantinople. The wool trade developed into serious business, a generator of capital. In the 13th century, the wool trade became the economic engine of the Low Countries and central Italy. By the end of the 14th century, Italy predominated.

In the 15th and 16th centuries, Irish Woollen Cloaks were exported globally from Waterford, and up to the 19th-century Irish wool and natural fibres such as linen, poplin and lace were considered exceptional luxury gifts in the Courts of Europe and given to Royals and Sultans worldwide.

Small flock 

We used to keep a few sheep at home. My father fancied them and always kept a few mongrels that formed the rudiments of a small flock, about seven or eight of them. I would have to say, in hindsight, that sheep were a good idea on a small family farm. They were a good way to learn about the Birds and the Bees, they were an ideal project in which to invest your Communion or Confirmation money and they taught life lessons about coping with frustration and mortality.

Of all the jobs that had to be undertaken in relation to the smooth husbanding of our little flock, shearing proved to be the most traumatic. This day, and it often took a full day, was equally trying for sheep and farmer alike. While my father had a shears and knew the basics, he was not a sheep shearing man. He knew the geography of the task but the science of it seemed to have escaped him. Couple to this the facts that his shears was blunt, his sheep were overweight and he invariably took on the task on the hottest day of summer, and you begin to get the picture.

I was usually tasked with taking each sheep from the shed to the place in the garden where my father was set up, shears in hand. It was a tough job, dragging those poor sheep from shed to shearing site and as the day wore on, I became more tired, my father more frustrated. The sheep themselves had little say in the matter but I am quite sure they dreaded the whole affair. Towards evening, the garden resembled the scene of a huge Native American buffalo kill.

While the whole project amounted to a fair amount of swearing, sweating, drinking copious amounts of water and some blood-letting, it did produce a few bags of wool, which, at that time, provide about a day’s wages. Amazingly, when my father and the sheep eventually cooled down, the whole debacle seemed to have been time well spent.

Today 

While it seems there is little hope of a recovery for an Irish wool industry, in the face of cheap modern textiles, there are certain projects taking place that are making a real effort to use Irish wool and to highlight its virtues. One person, doing her bit for the cause, is Zoe Daly, a businesswoman living in Co. Wicklow. Initially, Zoe discovered the shocking fact that the wool from our most common breeds of sheep here in Ireland is deemed to be worthless.

Her business, Ériu, creates blankets, fashion items and accessories and also sells yarn made from the wool of Irish sheep. Speaking in an interview with Maeve Quigley of Business Plus (December 2023), Zoe explained her interest in Irish wool.

"We're all stuck in fast fashion programming, where we buy something to throw it away, but when my granny made a baby blanket for me, I was inspired by the handmade nature of the gift. When I went to research this, I wanted to make a baby blanket using Irish wool and I wanted it all to be traceable to the farm to have that sustainable element. When I went to buy Irish wool, I discovered it was in no knitting shops. There was no yarn available anywhere and I couldn't understand why there was no Irish wool when we have loads of sheep. It didn't make sense to me."

Tomorrow 

Nowadays, most of our wool is considered unsuitable for knitwear and is exported to China while the wool we do use is imported from New Zealand, Australia and China. However, Daly continues an optimistic note.

“We now work with an inspiring network of farmers all over Ireland. We are sourcing select wools and also creating our own rare flock on our home farm. Hopefully, we can continue to build and incentivise the industry back into a place where Irish wool is valued and celebrated.” 

Is there any hope for a fresh start, any chance of getting a descent price for Ox Mountain wool in the future? It will take a few adjustments and it may not suit everyone who rears sheep on the mountain, but there is some light at the end of the tunnel. In addition to passionate people like Zoe Daly, groups are popping up in support of certain sheep breeds and the wool they produce; Irish wool that is actually suitable for use in knitting and crafting. Galway Wool is a good example and they have this to say about themselves:

“We are a farmer-owned and run co-operative supplying Galway Wool which is an Irish grown bio-fibre. Galway Wool is rare heritage wool grown with care and pride from our native Irish Breed of Sheep. We work with care and compassion, to shepherd our flocks in tandem with nature. All our wool comes from Pure Bred Galway Sheep that have a Registered Pedigree, ensuring our partners are producing and creating with authentic Native Irish Wool.” 

In addition to Galway sheep, the Blue Leister and the Romney sheep breeds also produce wool that is favoured for use in wool crafting currently. Ériu is currently paying ten times the going rate for such wool.

Sheep Festival 

If you have a fondness for sheep and all things related, you can visit the Cloonacool Sheep Festival, taking place in South Sligo this September 19 to 22. Sunday, September 22, features a sheep show which is fast becoming one of the largest in the West of Ireland. This is a fascinating event, organised by the local community there, a community proud of their Ox Mountain traditions.