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Chargeurs wool

wool characteristic

When we speak of wool origin we mean the geographic place where the sheep live.
The characteristics and quality of the wool is influenced by many environmental factors in which the sheep grows:

Climate

Soil

rainfall

general characteristics
of the environment

If we take two identical sheep (same breed) and let them live in 2 different geographic
locations (eg Australia and Argentina) they will produce wool with totally different characteristics.

This explains why in different parts of the world different wool are produced for different products.

usa

Uruguay

Argentina

Australia

New Zealand

Usa Sourcing

WOOL VOLUME BY BREED/MICRON

Sheep Breed Merino
18 to 21my 1.500 Tons (10%)

Sheep Breed Merino
21 to 25my 6.000 Tons (40%)

Sheep Breed CrossBred
26 to 33my 7.500 Tons (50%)

TOTAL 15.000

TYPE AND VOLUME OF WOOL BY SECTOR

Long Wool for Worsted 11.500 Tons (77%)
Short Wool for Woolen 3.500 Tons (23%)
TOTAL 15.000 Tons

FUTURE TREND IN GROWING WOOL

Production is stable and Merino wool is getting finer.

PARTICULARITIES OF USA WOOL

Good Color in Merino Wool
Average lenght 3 inches (68/70 mm in wool top)
High Bulk and resistance to compression
US Wool is very good for Hosiery, knitwear

uruguay SOURCING

WOOL VOLUME BY BREED/MICRON

Merino
17,5 to 22,5 my 6.825 Tons (26%)

Merino/Polwarth
22,5 to 24,5 my 2.625 Tons (10%)

Corriedale
24,5 to 29,5 my 13.125 Tons (50%)

Corriedale / Romney Marsh
29,5 my 3.675 Tons (14%)

TOTAL 26.250 Tons

FUTURE TREND IN GROWING WOOL

Uruguay has excellent sheep breeding conditions: natural country, green grasslands, production in an open-air environment with water, shelter and shadow, 1.300 mm rainfall per year, without snow, deserts, mountains, nor strong winds. No mules operation performed in Uruguay, animal welfare and excellent living conditions.
Due to the quality of soil and weather the whole year round, in most of the cases growers have the possibility to decide what to produce: ovine for wool, ovine for meat, cattle for milk, cattle for meat, forestry, rice, soy-bean, etc. To make their decisions, they consider production costs and final price for their products. It is very easy to change to agriculture from one year to the other, but changes with animal production take several years.
Our concern is not only the price of the wool but also if it competes with other products.
With most of our customers, we work on a long-term basis and -with adequate planning, we are able to deliver the same quality products the whole year round.

PARTICULARITIES OF URUGUAY WOOL

Merino
17,5 to 22,5 my: White, soft, very good length and resistance, very low vegetable content.

Merino/Polwarth
22,5 to 24,5 my: White, soft, very good length and resistance, very low vegetable content.

Xbreds/Corriedale
24,5 to 29,5 my: White to slightly creamy; very good length and resistance, very low vegetable content.

Corriedale / Romney March
>29,5 my: White to slightly creamy; very good length and resistance, low vegetable content.

new zeland SOURCING

WOOL VOLUME BY BREED/MICRON

Merino
17,7my average 8.000 Tons (5%)

Half-bred
28my average 9.000 Tons (6%)

Crossbred
36my average 133.000 Tons (89%)

TOTAL 150.000 Tons

FUTURE TREND IN GROWING WOOL

Merino production Stable
Half-bred production stable to slightly less
Crossbred production declining still due to dairy but this is now slowing down and we should start to see some consolidation around current numbers

PARTICULARITIES OF NEW ZEALAND WOOL

Contains low Vegetable Matter on average
High tensile strength
Very white and bright

Australia SOURCING

WOOL VOLUME BY BREED/MICRON

Fine Micron
18.4 my and finer 79.000 Tons (25%)

Medium Micron
18.6-24.4 my 184.000 Tons (57%)

Coarse Micron
>24.5 my 59.000 Tons (18%)

TOTAL 322.000 Tons

FUTURE TREND IN GROWING WOOL

The long-term trend is a move away from fine micron wool sheep and back to medium micron Merino and broader meat sheep (crossbred).
This trend is already apparent with a large decline in Superfine wool from the New England area over the last 5 years as growers in that area either switch to broader Merino or get out of sheep entirely.

PARTICULARITIES OF AUSTRALIA WOOL

Superfine Merino
15.5-18.5 my: Stylish and generally sound although with a seasonal staple break that makes achieving cvH

Medium micron Merino
19.0-22.5 my: Stylish but carrying some color (mostly scourable). Staple strength is very good and less seasonally affected but greasy staple length generally more than 90mm

Comeback/fine crossbred
23.0-25.5 my: White, well grown and mostly sound. Generally prepared to AWEX code of practice so skirtings are removed

Medium crossbred
26.0-33.0 my: Increasing in quantity as meat sheep. Majority fleeces unskirted but yields still range from 68-75% schlum dry basis. Usually some part tender and colour.

Downs wools (mainly Dorset)
30-34 my: Spongy and carrying color with generally lower yields.

Broad crossbreds (Border Leicester, some Lincoln)
Long and sound, high yields but visually lower in style and carry some color.

argentina SOURCING

WOOL VOLUME BY BREED/MICRON

Fine Micron
< 24,5my 26.000 Tons (61%)

Medium Micron
24,5 to 32my 15.700 Tons (37%)

Coarse Micron
> 32my 1.000 Tons (2%)

TOTAL 42.700 Tons

TYPE AND VOLUME OF WOOL BY AREA

Long Wool for Worsted 11.500 Tons (77%)
Short Wool for Woolen 3.500 Tons (23%)
TOTAL 15.000 Tons

FUTURE TREND IN GROWING WOOL

Subject to any natural disaster that could happen from now (prolonged drought, volcanic ashes, prolonged and heavy snowfall) wool production appears to have consolidated at its current levels. Also, subject to the above-mentioned reasons, there are no signs that the breeding is going finer or coarser to the one we have nowadays.

PARTICULARITIES OF ARGENTINA WOOL

Merino
17,5 to 22,5 my: White, soft, good resistance, a very low vegetable content.

Ideal
(Polwarth) 22,5 to 24,5 my: In Corrientes/Entre Rios areas
the color of the Ideal is tending slightly to a soft creamy

Corriedale
24,5 to 29,0 my: Corriedale from Patagonian areas are very white, brightness, good
resistance as well as low vegetable content

Criollos
26,0 to 32,5 my: However, Criollos is an undefined breed in a range of opaque white to creamy colors with contains of black and colored fibers as well as some medullated fibers

Romney Marsh
30,5 to 32,5 my: Corriedale and Romney Marsh
from Entre Rios and Corrientes areas are on the slightly creamy color

Lincoln
34,0 to 40,0/44,0 my: Lincoln from province of Buenos
Aires are very resistant, high brightness and good white

Your story starts with a good introduction

Partnership between farmers and Chargeurs are built around passion and strong know how investing all their strength for the love of wool. Farmers are dedicated to take care of the sheep and their land to deliver the best fibers.

Who is the farmer

The famous Mérino breed originated in Spain is very adaptable and thus perfectly manage their insertion all around the world like in the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina or Uruguay. This excellent forager can be bred in farms or left independent in the meadows or mountains depending the region.

Where the sheep live

The merino sheep are living independently in natural habitat with rich food sources. The mérino are making their wool until the beginning of the winter to be ready for the difficult conditions of some geographical region. Then they need to be shorn at least once a year because their wool will not stop growing.

How the sheep live

They are the real caretakers of the land. Convinced that a good management of animals and the land is key for a high-quality wool and the essence of a premium supply chain.

How the Farmer manages the Land

The raw merino fleece is scoured in a 30-meter long machine, where it is cleansed of their impurities and are then dried to yield scoured wool. The dry, fluffy scoured merino wool is carded to disentangle and align the fibers. Finally, the thinnest and longest carded merino fibers are then sent to be combed.

Where the greasy wool is scoured and combed

No Mulesing and Animal Welfare

Land management

The goal of land management is to address potential environmental impacts that may result from raising and grazing sheep in a particular region. It includes best land management practices for sheep farms and is intended to be a methodology that measures land and biodiversity health across different regions. There are four main land management components:

Soil: Ensure farmers have an understanding of what will impact the biodiversity of their land and have a strategy to protect and improve it over time.

Fertilizers: Ensure farmers use the minimum amount of inputs to meet the nutritional needs of their land to maintain their carrying capacity.

Pesticide Use: Ensure farmers use the minimum amount of pesticides to achieve adequate control of pest burden on their farm

ANIMAL WELFARE

The 5 Freedoms outline five aspects of animal welfare under human control. They were developed in response to a 1965 UK Government report on livestock husbandry, and were formalized in 1979 press statement by the UK Farm Animal Welfare Council. The five freedoms as currently expressed are:

1. Freedom from hunger or thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour

2. Freedom from discomfort by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area

3. Freedom from pain, injury or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment

4. Freedom from express (most) normal behavior by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal’s own kind

5. Freedom from fear and distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering

The animal welfare requirements specific international best practices help ensure the humane treatment of sheep. All independent third-party verifcation and certification audits must be completed to these same principles, scope, and methodology. The animal welfare section covers:

1. Nutrition

2. Environment

3. Handling

4. Shearing

5. Health

6. Animal husbandry

7. Slaughter

8. Transportation

NO MULESING STANDARDS

Chargeurs Luxury Materials is committed to supply no mulesing Merino wool to every customer requesting it. 100% of Merino wool sourced from Argentina, Uruguay and the United States are no mulesing.

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