Back on my soap box or maybe that should be a “wool” box. I don’t know about you but I seem to see posts regularly in the press regarding wool and how it’s worthless. Now that is true, there is very little value in wool at the moment. BUT how many of you buy products that contain wool? I made a conscious effort last year to buy sustainable products, yes maybe they cost more but I reckon that in the long term they will cost me less!
My duvet and pillows come from a fantastic company called Baavet, I bought a new rug in the spring and it was also made from wool, all the compost I use comes from Dalefoot which is made of wool and bracken, the string I use is called Twool (yes, you’ve guessed it, made from wool) and I’m a big fan of Woolcool to keep chilled food in transit, stay chilled. Maybe these are small steps but I feel I’m doing my own wee bit to support the wool industry.
So I was therefore delighted as a Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere supporter to be asked to join the biospheres “The Wool Gathering” which has been founded to to put the ‘oo’ back into wool! They lead on sustainable initiatives across south-west Scotland, and have created a group for those with an interest in local wool to come together, share their knowledge and experience of its production and use and of course look at other possibilities of what wool could be used for. The dream is for wool produced in the Biosphere region to be recognised as a useful, versatile, and sustainable product, and that with collaboration at all levels of the supply chain they can help reduce the current level of waste in the wool production process.
So maybe things are bleak currently for the wool industry but I can see an exciting future ahead and of course it involves doing what I love – local, sustainable, collaboration!