SHEEP meat and wool producers “deserve” the record prices they are seeing, according to Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) trade consultant Scott Carmody.
Mr Carmody, who saw sheep production in Western Australia for the first time last week, said “it was an eye opener”.
“I didn’t understand sheep production in WA, I never got to see it until now,” he said.
“It is an absolute credit to growers.
“Anyone who tells you you’re lucky for what you are getting in terms of prices, tell them where to go because you deserve it with all the work you do.”
Mr Carmody was in WA as part of the AWI funded The Sheep’s Back 2018 Autumn Optimiser Workshops held across the South West from April 3-6.
Four workshops were held at Esperance, Boxwood Hill, Frankland River and Katanning, which were attended by a total of 50 people according to Icon Agriculture consultant Mark Allington.
Mr Allington said it was a good turn out considering lots of farmers were in seeding mode and had attended a lot of field days and workshops.
The workshop discussion topics included the latest research and recommendations to improve the control of scour worms in lambs, a wool market intelligence report focussing on the importance of the Chinese market, and investing in sheep for the future.
Mr Carmody said there was a “view out there” that wool supply was low which was pushing up the process.
“I dispute that,” he said as he outlined the state of the industry and tried to correct misconceptions.
He said 80 per cent of the Australian clip came from Merinos, with crossbreds making up 20pc of production.
“Crossbreds have produced the lowest percentage of wool in the last eight years,” he said.
Mr Carmody said in 1991 prices saw 680/kg clean and in 2017 were seeing 1350/kg.
He outlined the growth of the wool industry since 2009 when “marketing of Australian wool” was more of a focus.
“The best wool to grow is about 19 to 19.5 micron, and it’s what consumers want,” he said.
“That’s the wool that’s used in apparel worn against the skin.
“Your production is what the consumer is demanding and that is the reason why demand is increasing.
“And it looks like the price is going to continue it’s trail upwards.
“We are in the sweet spot of the right micron.
“We are hitting the sweet spot and being rewarded for it.
“If anyone says the Kiwis or anyone else is doing it better it’s not true.
“There are no competitors if you want to wear something better.”
Mr Carmody said wool producers needed to ensure that their clip was prepared well before being sent to the wool stores.
“Poor preparation is always going to hammer you,” he said.
Mr Carmody said wool production had a good long-term outlook with demand from India expected to double in the next five years, as well as increasing demand from China with one million consumers earning more than $300,000 per year.
He said the “casual elegance” market was taking off across the world and it was a space that AWI was focused on going forward.
Mr Allington concluded the meeting with a focus on investing in sheep for the future.
He said “record high prices – driven by a combination of wool and sheep meat” had made the sheep industry “better than cropping”, and which “most haven’t seen like this” for some time.
Mr Allington said that across his surveys of producers there were no regrets for investing in yards and equipment to better handle sheep.
He said investing in the right yards and equipment could mean labour savings, increased efficiencies, biosecurity and risk management improvements, more time and a more attractive work environment for shearers or contractors, which could improve the pride and image of the industry - which was essential if new people were to be attracted to the industry.
Mr Allington said in the future mulesing would be banned, animal welfare would be more regulated, and there may come a time when a licence would be needed to manage livestock.
He said with technology improving quality assurance could be done by smartphone record keeping and all animals would be under an EID/GPS to enable the tracking of them at all times.
