Where's there's a wool there's a way - $17.25m kickstart

Tuesday, 25 January 2011, 10:04 am
Article: sticK

Where's there's a wool there's a way - $17.25m kickstart for renewed research

(sticK - 25 Jan. 2011 ) It could be wool's last hurrah, it could be the start of a whole new ball game.
The government's recent decision to invest $17.25 million in a wool research consortium will allow the exploration of possible new products and applications for the fibre and its raw constituent, keratin.

AgResearch is keen on the new funding. It reckons that many opportunities have not been followed up in recent years because of a lack of funding.

Farmers' increasing disenchantment with the product that 60 years ago provided over 80% of their income is somewhat understandable.

Wool is now lucky to cover the cost of getting it off a ewe's back for some farmers, so it is not surprising that last year's vote by cockies was to essentially forget about the fibre.

Using counter-intuitive logic, now's probably a good time to explore new uses and opportunities.

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