Mulesing-free wool preferred.

Depending on how much experience you have with yarn, you may have already come across wool labeled "mulesing-free." Especially if you love fluffy, soft, and high-quality merino wool , you should familiarize yourself with the term mulesing. Perhaps you're not even sure what the term actually means. Personally , mulesing-free wool is extremely important to us, and that's why we want to draw your attention to this issue and explain why it's so close to our hearts.

Merino sheep produce particularly fine wool

Mulesing affects Merino sheep. The origins of these fine-wool sheep likely lie in North Africa. There, Berbers raised Merino sheep and brought the first breeding animals of the breed to Spain as early as the High Middle Ages. The breed was further developed in Spain to utilize the sheep's exceptionally fine wool. High-quality yarns were woven into fabrics, primarily worn by the nobility. With the growing popularity of fine Merino wool fabrics, the wool of these sheep became a significant economic factor for Spain.

The oldest surviving document recording the sale of Merino wool dates back to 1307. A notarized sales contract documented the sale of 29 sacks of the high-quality wool. The buyer was the Genoese merchant family Usodimare in Tunisia, leading historians to believe that these wool traders further promoted and intensified Merino wool breeding in Spain. Large flocks were kept, particularly in the Kingdom of Castile, making this region once the largest supplier of Merino wool.

The first Merino sheep arrived in Germany in the 18th century. Breeding began particularly in Prussia, Württemberg, and Bavaria. In Germany, the Merino sheep was crossbred with a local sheep breed, resulting in the Merino Landrace sheep in the 1860s. Today, a large proportion of sheep kept in Germany are Merino Landrace sheep. The proportion is particularly high in Bavaria at 70 percent, while the breed accounts for 30 percent of sheep across Germany as a whole.

Australia as the largest producers of merino wool

Today, Australia is the largest supplier of Merino wool. European settlers brought the first sheep to Australia and New Zealand. Numerous families settled in their new homeland as farmers, raising sheep and earning part of their income through wool processing and trade . Over the years, large Merino flocks were established, and some farmers focused solely on sheep farming. Merino wool is now popular worldwide, accounting for around 40 percent of total annual wool sales. Almost 100 percent of Merino wool once came from Australia . However, this figure is declining sharply , due in no small part to mulesing. More and more wool lovers are consciously choosing mulesing-free wool . Despite the significant drop in sales, many farmers continue this controversial practice and are therefore unable to supply mulesing-free wool.

The roots of Mulsing

Anyone who thinks of mulesing as a yarn finishing technique is completely mistaken. It is, in fact, a questionable practice associated with significant animal suffering. Animal rights activists worldwide regularly protest against mulesing.

The method was developed by John WH Mules. The sheep farmer discovered flystrike on some of his sheep while shearing. Merino sheep, in particular, were bred to have wrinkled skin so that farmers could achieve a higher wool yield. The farmer repeatedly found flystrike maggots in these skin folds. One day, he slipped while shearing and inadvertently removed not only the sheep's wool but also one of the skin folds on its hindquarters. The sheep, which had previously suffered from myiasis several times, was subsequently spared from flystrike. The logical consequence for the Australian farmer was to remove the skin folds on the hindquarters of his sheep.

Initially used on weaned ewes, the method was later applied to lambs, as the farmer observed that healing was significantly better in lambs because the affected area was much smaller. The practice originated in Australia in the 1930s, as myiasis only appeared in Australian sheep in the 19th century. It is believed that the primary fly species responsible, Lucilia cuprina, was introduced to Australia in the early 19th century. This fly species was originally found predominantly in South Africa.

From discovery to standard procedure

What a farmer once discovered by chance has become a common practice over the years. In Australia, the surgical procedure is performed by specially trained individuals who typically travel from farm to farm and are paid per procedure. The procedure is performed on young animals between the time they are separated from their mothers and their first year of life. Unlike other surgeries, mulesing does not involve anesthesia. The young animals are restrained, and a V-shaped incision is made to remove the anal-tail fold. The tail is then docked at the level of the third caudal vertebra. The animals are not given painkillers, neither during the procedure nor during the recovery phase. Although the procedure is no longer performed during shearing but with specialized cutting instruments, it remains extremely painful for the animals.

Animal rights activists vs. producers

Mulesing has long been a hotly debated topic. Unsurprisingly, most of the practice's proponents come from Australia. Merino wool production is a major economic factor in Australia, and its advocates argue that mulesing has proven effective in protecting sheep from severe flystrike. While other methods exist to protect the animals from infestation, they claim these are not sufficiently tested and, more importantly, not economically viable.

PETA focused on the Australian wool and sheep industry quite early on and called for a boycott of merino wool from Australia. Images and videos were repeatedly published showing how Australian sheep farmers operate to achieve the highest possible yield, with animal welfare playing a clearly subordinate role.

Abercrombie & Fitch was one of the first major fashion companies to react to the conditions in the Australian wool and sheep industry, completely ceasing to use merino wool produced in Australia. Numerous other companies followed suit, resulting in significant revenue losses for the Australian wool industry . The Australian practice repeatedly attracts public attention, and it is therefore no surprise that more and more textile companies are speaking out against mulesing. In March 2020, a list was published of international textile brands that consciously avoid using merino wool from Australia.

Unlike the Australian merino industry, the New Zealand wool industry voluntarily banned mulesing in 2010. As part of this initiative, the Zque quality label was introduced, guaranteeing consumers mulesing-free wool from New Zealand . An official ban on the surgical procedure followed in New Zealand on October 1, 2018.

Alternatives to mulesing in Merino sheep

While mulesing has been banned in New Zealand, as mentioned previously, Australia is still far from doing so. The Australian wool and sheep industry fears increased costs and therefore a decrease in profits. However, non-surgical methods now exist to protect animals from flystrike. Here are a few examples of how Australian sheep farmers could combat myiasis:
• Special plastic clips (breech clips) to tighten the sheepskin and thus minimize skin folds.
• Use of safe insecticides
• Intradermal injections (certain proteins are administered to the animals via injection)
• the acceleration of biological fly control
• a change of thinking in breeding

Yarn manufacturers are seeking alternative wool suppliers

It's certainly still a long way off before you can buy only mulesing-free wool in stores. However, a few yarn manufacturers are already consciously using only mulesing-free wool. This shows that a change in thinking is taking place among manufacturers as well. Of course, you can support this by always choosing wool from manufacturers who are committed to mulesing-free practices.

These manufacturers have consciously switched from their Australian suppliers and are sourcing Merino wool from alternative suppliers. Even though the transition often takes time, more and more yarn manufacturers are becoming aware of the issue. The goal is to process mulesing-free wool into high-quality yarns that you can use with a clear conscience.

The crucial factor is not the yarn manufacturer, but rather their source of merino wool. Manufacturers who label their yarns as mulesing- free must therefore pay close attention to their sources and verify them. Suppliers from New Zealand and Europe are now preferred when purchasing raw wool, even if their prices are higher than those of Australian suppliers.

Mulesing-free – processing merino wool without a guilty conscience

Mulesing-free wool is close to our hearts because we not only love wool but also value animal welfare. While a ranking compiled by the global animal welfare organization "Four Paws" in 2020 showed that only four out of 28 knitting yarn manufacturers could offer 100% mulesing-free wool , the number of manufacturers is increasing. Accordingly, we offer you high-quality cashmere wool from select manufacturers in our shop, so you can continue to work with exceptionally soft and warm wool without a guilty conscience. As you can see from our wool selection, it's not necessary to completely avoid merino wool. Rather, as passionate knitters, we feel obligated to consciously choose mulesing-free wool. While not all manufacturers offer mulesing-free yarns yet, it's worthwhile supporting those who consciously source their wool to offer their customers a cruelty-free product.

Mulesging-free wool offers you long-term added value, because when you knit your new favorite pieces, you can wear them with pride and a clear conscience.