The British Wool Marketing Board has announced that sheep farmers selling wool through the body in 2012 will see a 22p/ kilogram rise in payments this year.

Once shearing was a loathed chore which saw farmers in the UK hire specialists from Australia and New Zealand to shear animals, however, the time of year has been seen in a different light of late as the wool industry has become increasingly lucrative on higher demand around the world.  

BWMB announced that this year’s price increase is the fourth in as many years. Demand for British wool around the world has grown in recent years, with China in particular proving to be a valuable emerging market. 

Chief Executive Ian Hartley told a meeting in London that, thanks to the board’s efforts, this year’s average clip value will rise to £1.24/kg. The news will be welcome relief for sheep farmers, which have been hit hard by falling lamb prices in recent weeks.

2011 saw a 6 per cent increase in production across the UK, which board members said also bodes well for producers in the UK, as sheep populations have fallen off in many of the world’s major wool producing nations.  

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