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The enhancement of native sheep’s wool: Three case studies from some Italian regions
Small Ruminant Research 135 (2016) 85–89
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Small Ruminant Research journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/smallrumres
Review article
The enhancement of native sheep’s wool: Three case studies from some Italian regions夽 E. Vagnoni a,∗ , C. Carrino b , N. Dibenedetto c , E. Pieragostini d , B. Consenti e a
Istituto di Biometeorologia, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, CNR IBIMET, Sassari, Italy Consorzio Murgia Viva, Altamura, BA, Italy Azienda Fratelli Carrino, Contrada San Giusto, Lucera, FG, Italy d Dipartimento DETO, Sezione di Clinica Veterianria e Produzioni animali, Università di Bari, Bari, Italy e Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Foggia, Italy b c
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Available online 19 December 2015 Keywords: Local wool Sustainable supply chain Native sheep breeds Multifunctional sheep farm Innovation Valorisation
a b s t r a c t In a few decades, the downturn of the traditional textile sector, the spreading of synthetics fibers and the fierce competition of major wool producing countries converted the Italian wool from an income opportunity to a problem to deal with. In fact, in Italy are produced around 14,000 tons yearly of wool but no more than 5% of it finds profitable applications, mainly in niche markets. Sheep shearing represents for Italian breeders an unavoidable cost rarely covered by the selling price of greasy wool. If not transformed, wool must be managed as a special waste, as the European law prescribes. The above described scenario force farmers to get rid of their wool as quickly as possible weakening the whole supply chain. In order to contrast this vicious circle several initiatives of local wool valorisation have been promoted in Italy in recent years by exploring innovation of traditional wool applications and new market strategies. This paper analyzes three case studies implemented in different regional socio-economic contexts to highlight strategic and methodological approaches for enhancing the Italian supply chains of local wools. The MEDLaine project followed a cross-border cooperation way of promoting research and development actions in the agriculture, handicraft and tourism industries in Sardinia, Tuscany and Corsica (France). PartnerSheep, it is a capacity-building and institutional development project aimed at increasing the ability to make system of sheep farmers located in the Alta Murgia National Park area (Apulia region). The Plauto project, also implemented in Apulia, similarly promotes skills, procedures and new organization models of sheep farming. The analyzed case studies highlight that to converge energies on local wools are justified by economic, environmental and cultural factors. The recovery and the enhancement of the Italian wool supply chain in an innovative and sustainable way strongly depends on cooperation and networking capacities/opportunities among breeders and among them, local government administrations and research centres. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction Competitiveness of micro, small and medium-sized rural enterprises dealing with traditional agricultural products strongly depend on their sustainability and innovative improvement. The best practices and successful experiences all around the world showed that there is no need to distort or give up the “identity”
夽 This paper is part of a Special Issue entitled “SIPAOC Conference 2014”. Guest Edited by Annunziata Giangaspero, Agostino Sevi and Maria Manfredi. ∗ Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (E. Vagnoni). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.smallrumres.2015.12.011 0921-4488/© 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
of each production system but it is crucial that the link between products, environment and territory is strengthened and valued. The case of the Italian wool supply chain is a major example of how, whenever there is a combination of resources, will and talent, despite possible low revenues, there is still an opportunity (Duce, 2011). No official data are available about the greasy wool production in Italy, but considering a national sheep population of about 6.3 million heads (more than 70% located in Sardinia, Sicily, Lazio and Tuscany) (ISTAT, 2013), it is realistic to estimate that the Italian annual average wool production is around 14,000 tons (the wool production per head usually ranges from 1.2 to 3.5 kg depending on the sheep breed). No more than 5% of this production finds a com-
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mercial outlet and the remaining basically represent a by-product of sheep breeding. With rare exceptions, the average price paid to farmers for their sheep fleeces is lower than the cost of having them shorn (0.50 D /kg versus 2.50 D /head, respectively). With the only exception of “Gentile di Puglia” breed, the Italian wool is generally coarse with predominance of “kemps” (short and dead fibers) and consequently not particularly suitable for industrial textile and clothing applications. The lack of profitable opportunities forces sheep farmers to get rid of their wool as quickly as possible, since it is quite a voluminous product that, unless transformed, needs to be disposed of as a special waste with additional cost. This situation exposes the supply chain to vulnerability and criticalities on many levels: as far as the production process is concerned, good practices in sheep breeding and shearing are lacking; obsolete technologies and a limited range of semi-finished products have a detrimental effect on wool processing/scouring; from a market perspective, there are too many middlemen across the industry, a lack of effective marketing strategies and poor protection and promotion of markets for traditional products. Nevertheless, only a few decades ago wool represented for Italian farmers a valuable resource with a wide range of applications – from textile to the mattress industry – and a favorable market (1 kg of wool were often more expensive than 1 kg of cheese). The causes of this vertical downturn are multiple and complex but fundamentally linked to the broader evolution of the Italian textile sector, which historically represented the “natural outlet” for local wools. On one hand, the strong competition of major producing countries (more than the 50% of the world wool production is concentrated in China, Australia and New Zealand, which cover with fine Merino fleece the bulk of Italian wool demand), on the other hand the spreading of synthetic fibers that have almost completely replaced the coarse wool in most of the traditional applications (Zoccola et al., 2014). In brief, suitable uses are actually limited to niche applications and the wool management represents for Italian breeders a relevant problem to deal with. Certainly, the focus on Italian wools is justified by a number of economic, environmental and cultural factors (Bacci et al., 2013). The imperative is to identify new types of products and new market opportunities, reconstructing the vertical supply chain on an innovation-and-sustainability-driven strategy. According to this approach, several initiatives of wool valorisation have been promoted in the last years in Italy by both public and private organizations. This paper analyzes some selected case studies with the aim of discussing strategic and methodological approaches for enhancing the Italian supply chains of local wools as applied in different regional socio-economic contexts.
products in the agriculture, handicraft and tourism industries. This includes three primary areas of interest: wool, native plants and educational and rural tourism. For each lines of intervention, MEDLaine defined the following set of specific key objectives with medium term perspective: (1) enhancement of the wool industry as a factor for development in rural areas; (2) enhancement of local and native plants for textile natural dyeing and medicinal applications; (3) enhancement of educational and cultural tourism as a vehicle to promote food and non-food resources. The recovery and enhancement of wool from local and native sheep breeds is meant to produce handmade textile handicrafts and green building applications, based on technological properties of local wool (high insulating power, high water repellency, high resistance to compression, etc.) and inspired by local traditions and culture. Examples of products from this area of activity include traditional carpets and innovative functional clothing using sustainable technologies and other applications for the green economy trade, such as insulating panels or biomedical technologies. The project included a total investment of about 2.6 million euro granted by the Cross-Border Cooperation Program Italy–France Maritime through two different implementation periods: from May 2009 to November 2011 and from July 2013 to July 2015. 2.2. Key actions In coherence with the project’s strategy guidelines, MED-Laine workflow consisted of the following work-packages: WP1. Local wool supply chain: – SWOT analysis and identification of development strategies for the local wool sector, through surveys, focus groups and interviews with stakeholders; – studies for selection, recovery and certification of autochthonous sheep breeds (“Pecora Nera di Arbus”, in Sardinia, “Amiatina” and “Vissana”, in Tuscany); – chemical and physical characterization of native sheep wool and analysis of mechanical properties of derived fabrics; – sensory evaluation and instrumental measurements to determine tactile properties of wool fleeces and fabrics; – realization of woolen prototypes derived from an ideas contest, “Pure Sardinian Wool”, in which more than thirty designers put forward ideas for innovative uses, layouts and characteristics for modern woolen items. WP2. Local and native plants for textile natural dyeing and functional products:
2. MED-Laine project. Science and marketing help develop new opportunities for local Mediterranean wool 2.1. Strategic context and key objectives Sardinia is the most important Italian region for sheep breeding with more than 2.9 million ewes – about 46% of total Italian flock (ISTAT, 2013) – and provides more than 1/3 of the Italian wool production. Sheep farming represents a significant activity also in Tuscany and Corsica (France)—Mediterranean regions which are socially and economically closely connected with Sardinia. Looking for turning the annual wool production (more than 4000 tons) of these Regions and its “special waste” into a real resource, thus increasing business incomes, CNR IBIMET (National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Biometeorology), in cooperation with other research centres and stakeholder associations, launched MED-Laine project. The project strategy searches for ways to promote production and marketing innovation in micro, small and medium-sized enterprises dealing with traditional high-quality
– in-depth studies of selected local and native plant species for textile natural dyeing and medicinal applications; – scientific tests to evaluate the anti-UV, anti-moth and antimicrobial proprieties of the selected plants; – assessment of the environmental impacts of production and use of natural wool dyes using a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. WP3. Rural tourism and territorial marketing: – economic analysis and consumer sciences application to wool market and products; – design and implementation of territorial marketing models; – series of cultural/educational tourism and communication events.
E. Vagnoni et al. / Small Ruminant Research 135 (2016) 85–89
Moreover, in the second implementation period (2011–2015), the MED-Laine partnership (leaded by CNR IBIMET) established a competency centre for local wools and textiles, plant extracts and derived products, equipped with a specific chemistry laboratory, with the purpose of providing expertise for innovation project support, acting both as repository of knowledge and resource pools for multiple application areas. Other actions are in progress: two wool equipped collection centres managed by private consortia in Sardinia and Tuscany; a pilot plant for the extraction of the active ingredients of plant extracts for textile dyeing, medicinal applications and functional products; development of Apps for mobile devices to create tourist circuits on-demand and a geo-localized territorial marketing service.
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– fragmentation and lack of coordination between supply chain actors. It is paradigmatic that the vertical drop of raw wool fleeces price in Sardinia in 2015 (from 1.3–0.40 D /kg) as a result of institutional problems within a sheep farmers consortium; – lack of infrastructure to support the sustainable development of the supply chain; – lack of a trademark to protect and value the local production; – technological obsolescence and high environmental impacts of traditional wool industry production systems; – poor marketing and communication strategies.
3. The project PartnerSheep in the area of Alta Murgia National Park 3.1. Strategic context and key objectives
2.3. Impact and perspectives MED-Laine achieved good results and positive impact in the technical–scientific, socio-economic and institutional spheres. Tests carried out on wool and traditional textiles showed a wide range of technological and commercial properties still unexplored and likely to open new business opportunities and applications for local wool. New methodologies have been developed and applied to wool characterization and management, which were published in scientific-divulgation books and scientific papers. For instance: fleece an fabric physic and sensory evaluation (Bacci et al., 2012; Camilli et al., 2015; Drago et al., 2010); expansion of local wool dyeing to incorporate multifunctional properties such as antiUV, anti-moth and anti-microbial, alongside natural dyeing which avoids the use of synthetic chemicals. New uses of wool have been proposed based on its specific technological properties which offer added value to its applications, for example in the green building sector. Two farmers consortia have been created for wool trade in Sardinia and Tuscany with immediate positive effects on price increase for greasy wool. For example, in Sardinia 700 integrated sheep farmers sold their raw wool in 2012 and 2013 for 100% more than in the past two years. Moreover, the various cultural tourism events made a relevant contribution to raising awareness of the benefits and commercial implications of wool within the industry as well as among the general public. The success and response of initiatives such as a design competition for wool products, a touring exhibition of woolen prototypes, seminaries on sensorial analysis, clearly showed how, with renewed design and ideas, wool can definitely be brought back into fashion. As far as the institutional impacts are concerned, the intense effort in networking and cross-border cooperation allowed to a Framework Agreement of Cooperation between Sassari and Grosseto Province embodies the success of the Project in drawing the attention of the Public Administration to issues and potentialities of local wool industry. The agreement, that involved also other crucial stakeholders as the North Sardinia Chamber of Commerce, led to a common strategy and vision on the foreseen developments of wool sector. The MED-Laine results were included in the policies framework of local supply chain valorisation also in Corsica. The project showed that the application and commercial potentials of local wools are interesting and promising. The challenge for this area lies in improving the technology used by the producers use and in restructuring the supply chain. Indeed, MED-Laine represented a positive experience and offered a small but significant contribution for effective valorisation of this neglected heritage. However, in order to move from pilot initiatives to large-scale practices we have to face the challenge of economic sustainability which is still a long way to go. The main problems and structural weaknesses of the local wools sector highlighted by MED-Laine, and to be considered for promoting new actions, are outlined below:
All the considerations in the introduction underpinned this second case study which follows an initiative of the “Murgia Viva” Consortium whose members (8 sheep farmers) in 2011, at the shearer season, aggregated 45 sheep farmers; 18 tons of wool were collected and given to a single dealer negotiating a price of 0.35 D /kg. Thus this positive result helped them become aware that the core feature of the success was the aggregation. Based on this experience, in 2012, the members of “Murgia Viva” Consortium launched the ParterSheep project partly funded by the Alta Murgia National Park. The project was thought to be central to the idea of increasing market value to at least the cost of sheep shearing (Dibenedetto et al., 2013). Meanwhile farmers should increase their ability to make system, then including other objectives to be achieved in collaboration, such as the enhancement of the traditional activities of sheep farming (i.e., dairy production). Thus, for a period of three years the workflow consisted of three steps scheduled each year from April to the next February. Step 1: Preparatory courses for wool sorters In April, the preparatory courses, mainly addressed to sheepfarmers, were systematically held in the headquarters of the Alta Murgia Park. Step 2: Organization of shearing and wool collection From May to July, the wool used to be collected and put into bales, tagged with the logo of the Alta Murgia Park, the farmer’s name, and all relevant information for traceability purpose. The bales were loaded into shipping trucks and sent to the Consortium “The Wool Company” in Miagliano (Biella). There, flocked and wool items of each bale were sorted for their specific end use. Step 3: Wool sale Most woolgrowers asked “The Wool Company” to sell the wool in their behalf, while a small group of them chose the opportunity of transforming their small lots of greasy raw wool into washed wool or dyed yarn. Usually in February, “The Wool Company” sent the proceeds from sale to each single farmer together with a report card indicating the assessment of the evaluation process and wool sale reports.
3.2. Impact and perspectives PartnerSheep achieved good results as to the aggregation attitude of the farmers. Actually, from the initial group of 45 woolgrowers the number gradually increased to 113, as well as the number of wool tons, so that, while at the beginning only two trucks (each shipping 18 tons of wool) were sent to Biella, for the second and third year they were three and four respectively. Unfortunately, the proceeds from sale did not increased as expected; they averaged 0.50 D /kg, but with a range of possible values from 0.25 D /kg to 1.2 D /kg, according to wool quality (Dibenedetto et al., 2014).
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The strong points of this experience is that the report cards allowed a classification of woolgrowers according to the accuracy in filling and assembling the wool bales; thus on one hand some of the less expert farmers were driven to better their techniques, on the other hand, a group was found that could not be helped. This classification allows selecting the worst woolgrowers and leaving them out of further plans, because the cost of wool sorting carried out by “The wool Company” was spread over the group. This means that “good farmers” had to pay for the time spent to sort the dirty wool of the few “bad farmers”. The weak point is that, as the shipping cost per kg was supported by the Alta Murgia National Park, from now on, in lack of funding, the cost of trucks for Biella will be not affordable and alternative solutions need to be found. At present, the Murgia Viva Consortium is keeping in touch with the woolgrowers in order to check if they will be partaking in the new initiatives aiming at consolidating PartnerSheep results. To the purpose, the critical mass for growth and competitiveness must be reached as soon as possible. New groups of woolgrowers from southern Apulia as well as from Calabria seem to want to join the PartnerSheep group and these are positive signs of moving forward. The above positive feedback needs to be channeled in the directions consistent with the overall sustainable strategy such as the development of value added wool processing and re-positioning production in the rural sector on a purely commercial basis. These goals are among the goals pursued by the on-going project PLAUTO, focused on the enhancement of local and native wools and funded by Apulian Regional Administration. In conclusion, steps have been taken by the wool, turning from “special waste” to resource (even if with small profit); now the challenge is to consolidate the acquired results and go further. There are grounds to be cautiously optimistic and PLAUTO is an opportunity, which all those involved in PartnerSheep must make good use. 4. The native sheep’s wool: the project PLAUTO in Apulia 4.1. Strategic context and key objectives Apulia is another Italian region having an ancient pastoral tradition that, notwithstanding the progressive contraction of these last years both in the number of farms and in the heads reared, still occupies a significant position in the economy of Apulia. In 2013 Apulian sheep numbered around 280,000, amounting to an annual total of 560 tons of wool. The previously described case studies show that things do seem to be changing, although the lean figures checked for sale are still far from covering the cost of shearing. Actually, in the context of the current economic difficulties, a renewed interest in wool-based products, can be strategic for future advancement of Murgia hills (Bari Province) and Capitanata (Foggia Province) where pastoralism and livestock rearing have been always practiced. Based on this conviction, in 2013 the Section of Clinical Veterinary and Animal Production of DETO, Department of the University of Bari, in collaboration with stakeholders associations have responded to the notice for the public call for project proposals for research and experimentation in agriculture (B.U.R.P. n. 59 del 02/05/2013). The proposed three-year project, aiming at promoting and implementing skills, procedures and new organization models targeted to recover and enhance Apulian wool sheep (Carrino et al., 2014), has been considered eligible for a total funding of 150,000.00 D. 4.2. Key actions According to the project aims and objectives PLAUTO will consist of the following steps:
WP1. Setting up of an inter-provincial centre for wool harvest, pre-selection and sorting. Based on the past experiences gained in the management of the wool question in different Apulian areas, the farmer stakeholders involved in this project will gather farmers according to the sheep breed reared, the most frequent being: “Gentile di Puglia” in the northern part of Apulia (province of Foggia), “Altamurana” and “Comisana” in the central part (provinces of Bari and BarlettaAndria-Trani), and “Leccese” and “Sarda” in the southern part (provinces of Brindisi and Lecce). The wool will then be harvested in different centres (one or two per area) where pre-selection and sorting according to the quality of fleece hair, will be carried out by young skilled workers who will move from one centre to another. WP2. Preparation of a code of practice setting out procedural guidelines for the production of “Apulian wools” in order to develop quality production routines. The guidelines document will be clearly designed and easy to read. It will include the management procedures which mostly affect the wool quality (feeding, genetic background of the animals, sanitation, animal welfare), particularly the aspects concerning the sheep shearing, the wool sorting and packaging. To further develop and implement these pilot activities, sustainability indicators will be proposed such as pastures availability, grazing practices, and the numbers of animals per hectare; and this in order to praise the wright farmers and encourage to adopt good practices the others. WP3. The creation and evaluation of a pilot ‘micro’ supply chain for the textile processing of Apulian wools. To the purpose, two production segments will be analyzed. i.) The first will focus on the production of high-standard handcrafted textile products, made with professional frames, entirely handcrafted and with patterns of the tradition revised in a modern key. The work will be carried out at the workshop of Uggiano La Chiesa managed by the “Le Costantine” Foundation. After the sheep are sheared, the fleece needs wet cleaning with hot water to emulsify the wool grease, and the resulting sludge disposal is a potential pollutant. After the introduction of environmental taxation, in Italy there are only very few wool processing companies, all located in the North of Italy. Thus, in the absence of indigenous Apulian companies, the Consortium “The Wool Company” of Biella will be committed to processing the fiber from fleece onwards. • The second segment will focus on the production process of wool yarn and the marketing of handicrafts directly from farms, and their consortia. WP4. Investigation on the possible commercial valorisation of Apulian wool in innovative non textile sectors such as green building services or plant-growing sector. – Analysis of the application of thermal insulation in Italy. State of the supply of thermal insulation products in natural wool (production process and types of goods carried, thermal performance, actors, profit margins). – Experimental trials on wool devices obtained from waste of wool aiming at checking the feasibility of their use as mulches (with the synergic action of anti-nematode organic molecules) in orchards or flower-growing industry. Unfortunately the project did not start in 2014 because the Apulian regional administration, in order to fully comply with the terms of the EU’s Stability and Growth Pact (SGP European Stability Pact), postponed any financing decisions, rescheduling them from October 2014 to June 2015. Thus PLAUTO will hopefully start at the
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beginning of July 2015. This will imply a delay in the scheduled actions connected to the sheep-shearing season, namely most of the WP1, which will necessarily be undertaken and completed in two years. However WP2, WP3 and WP4 will freely start, go on and reach their goals, according to the plan.
clude the other, but rather enrich and complement one another. The increase in cooperative initiatives among breeders and the intensification of networking activities among them, local government administrations and research centres still represents the key factor to achieve fully sustainability over the long term.
4.3. Impact and perspectives
Conflict of interest
It is probably too early to say what will be the most valuable outcome of this project and any evaluation of its impacts may be premature, however the project perspective concerning the potential beneficiaries may be stressed. Actually, partners involved in the textile sector (“The Wool Company” Consortium, “Le Costantine” Foundation) can benefit from the projects results. Similarly, a target group will hopefully empower, and take advantage both of the promoted activities and networking, the beneficiaries being agricultural farms and their consortia, didactic farms, skilled seasonal workers (sheep-shearers and wool sorters), entrepreneurs involved in the textile sector, entrepreneurs involved in the greening sector as well as those involved in orchards or flower-growing industry.
The authors Vagnoni E., Carrino C., Dibenedetto N., Pieragostini E., Consenti B., certify that they have not a financial or personal relationship with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias this paper entitled “The enhancement of native sheep’s wool: selected case studies from Italian regions”.
5. Concluding remarks In spite of the very negative economic trend of the last decades and facing the low quality of Italian sheep wool, efforts on local wools are justified by economic, environmental and cultural factors. Local wool encompasses a wide range of potential (sustainable) uses, which may find new opportunities in the current greening process of European economy. Removing bottlenecks to innovation in the sheep farming system, handicraft and textiles industries, preserving and boosting at the same time the cultural and symbolic capital inherent to local wools, appears to be the main pathway for enhancing the local wool supply chain. A real innovation process requires removing barriers of prejudice and an openness to new ideas and suggestions to improve current knowledge. The assessment of economic and environmental sustainability of production processes has to be the main criterion for finding the best suitable use of wool, from clothing and fashion to green building and fine chemicals applications. No hypothesis should be ruled out from the start, nor any solution should pre-
References Bacci, L., Camilli, F., Di Lonardo, S., Duce, P., Vagnoni, E., Mauro, A., 2013. Neglected wools: fundamental steps to counteract the loss of potentially valuable materials derived from native sheep breeds. Conf. Pap. Mater. Sci., http://dx. doi.org/10.1155/2013/402372. Bacci, L., Camilli, F., Drago, M.S., Magli, M., Vagnoni, E., Mauro, A., Predieri, S., 2012. Sensory evaluation and instrumental measurements to determine tactile proprieties of wool fabrics. Text. Res. J. 82 (14), 1430–1441. Camilli, F., Crisci, A., Mauro, A., Bacci, L., Di Lonardo, S., Vagnoni, E., Duce, P., 2015. A preliminary characterization of wools from Italian native sheep breeds: opportunities for new productions and the development of rural areas. J. Nat. Fibers 12 (3), 265–275. Carrino, C., Ciani, E., Dibenedetto, N., Pieragostini, E., 2014. Progetto lane AUTOctone (Plauto). Large Anim. Rev. 20, 100–102. Dibenedetto, N., Modesti, F., Mattia, C., Direnzo, P., Dibenedetto, A., Pieragostini, E., 2013. La lana verso un nuovo futuro: parte in Puglia il progetto Partnersheep. Large Anim. Rev. 19, 45. Dibenedetto, N., Direnzo, P., Modesti, F., Mattia, C., Dibenedetto, A., Pieragostini, E., 2014. Progetto PartnerSheep nell’area del Parco Nazionale dell’Alta Murgia. Large Anim. Rev. 20, 103–106. Drago, M.S., Magli, M., Bacci, L., Camilli, F., Vagnoni, E., Predieri, S., 2010. Valutazione sensoriale per la determinazione delle proprietà tattili di panni di lana tipici. In: Proceedings of III Convegno Nazionale Società Italiana delle Scienze Sensoriali, 12 December 2010, Napoli (Italy). Duce, P., 2011. Looking for opportunities within structural limitations. Available from http://www.interact-eu.net/downloads/4544/ (last accessed 24.09.14.). ISTAT, 2013. Italian National Institute of Statistics. Database available at http:// www.istat.it/database (last accessed 24.09.14.). Zoccola, M., Montarsolo, A., Mossotti, R., Patrucco, A., Tonin, C., 2014. Green hydrolysis conversion of wool wastes into organic nitrogen fertilizers. In: Proceedings of 2nd international conference on Sustainable Solid Waste Management, Athens 12th-14th June.
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Small Ruminant Research journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/smallrumres
Review article
The enhancement of native sheep’s wool: Three case studies from some Italian regions夽 E. Vagnoni a,∗ , C. Carrino b , N. Dibenedetto c , E. Pieragostini d , B. Consenti e a
Istituto di Biometeorologia, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, CNR IBIMET, Sassari, Italy Consorzio Murgia Viva, Altamura, BA, Italy Azienda Fratelli Carrino, Contrada San Giusto, Lucera, FG, Italy d Dipartimento DETO, Sezione di Clinica Veterianria e Produzioni animali, Università di Bari, Bari, Italy e Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Foggia, Italy b c
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Available online 19 December 2015 Keywords: Local wool Sustainable supply chain Native sheep breeds Multifunctional sheep farm Innovation Valorisation
a b s t r a c t In a few decades, the downturn of the traditional textile sector, the spreading of synthetics fibers and the fierce competition of major wool producing countries converted the Italian wool from an income opportunity to a problem to deal with. In fact, in Italy are produced around 14,000 tons yearly of wool but no more than 5% of it finds profitable applications, mainly in niche markets. Sheep shearing represents for Italian breeders an unavoidable cost rarely covered by the selling price of greasy wool. If not transformed, wool must be managed as a special waste, as the European law prescribes. The above described scenario force farmers to get rid of their wool as quickly as possible weakening the whole supply chain. In order to contrast this vicious circle several initiatives of local wool valorisation have been promoted in Italy in recent years by exploring innovation of traditional wool applications and new market strategies. This paper analyzes three case studies implemented in different regional socio-economic contexts to highlight strategic and methodological approaches for enhancing the Italian supply chains of local wools. The MEDLaine project followed a cross-border cooperation way of promoting research and development actions in the agriculture, handicraft and tourism industries in Sardinia, Tuscany and Corsica (France). PartnerSheep, it is a capacity-building and institutional development project aimed at increasing the ability to make system of sheep farmers located in the Alta Murgia National Park area (Apulia region). The Plauto project, also implemented in Apulia, similarly promotes skills, procedures and new organization models of sheep farming. The analyzed case studies highlight that to converge energies on local wools are justified by economic, environmental and cultural factors. The recovery and the enhancement of the Italian wool supply chain in an innovative and sustainable way strongly depends on cooperation and networking capacities/opportunities among breeders and among them, local government administrations and research centres. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction Competitiveness of micro, small and medium-sized rural enterprises dealing with traditional agricultural products strongly depend on their sustainability and innovative improvement. The best practices and successful experiences all around the world showed that there is no need to distort or give up the “identity”
夽 This paper is part of a Special Issue entitled “SIPAOC Conference 2014”. Guest Edited by Annunziata Giangaspero, Agostino Sevi and Maria Manfredi. ∗ Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (E. Vagnoni). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.smallrumres.2015.12.011 0921-4488/© 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
of each production system but it is crucial that the link between products, environment and territory is strengthened and valued. The case of the Italian wool supply chain is a major example of how, whenever there is a combination of resources, will and talent, despite possible low revenues, there is still an opportunity (Duce, 2011). No official data are available about the greasy wool production in Italy, but considering a national sheep population of about 6.3 million heads (more than 70% located in Sardinia, Sicily, Lazio and Tuscany) (ISTAT, 2013), it is realistic to estimate that the Italian annual average wool production is around 14,000 tons (the wool production per head usually ranges from 1.2 to 3.5 kg depending on the sheep breed). No more than 5% of this production finds a com-
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mercial outlet and the remaining basically represent a by-product of sheep breeding. With rare exceptions, the average price paid to farmers for their sheep fleeces is lower than the cost of having them shorn (0.50 D /kg versus 2.50 D /head, respectively). With the only exception of “Gentile di Puglia” breed, the Italian wool is generally coarse with predominance of “kemps” (short and dead fibers) and consequently not particularly suitable for industrial textile and clothing applications. The lack of profitable opportunities forces sheep farmers to get rid of their wool as quickly as possible, since it is quite a voluminous product that, unless transformed, needs to be disposed of as a special waste with additional cost. This situation exposes the supply chain to vulnerability and criticalities on many levels: as far as the production process is concerned, good practices in sheep breeding and shearing are lacking; obsolete technologies and a limited range of semi-finished products have a detrimental effect on wool processing/scouring; from a market perspective, there are too many middlemen across the industry, a lack of effective marketing strategies and poor protection and promotion of markets for traditional products. Nevertheless, only a few decades ago wool represented for Italian farmers a valuable resource with a wide range of applications – from textile to the mattress industry – and a favorable market (1 kg of wool were often more expensive than 1 kg of cheese). The causes of this vertical downturn are multiple and complex but fundamentally linked to the broader evolution of the Italian textile sector, which historically represented the “natural outlet” for local wools. On one hand, the strong competition of major producing countries (more than the 50% of the world wool production is concentrated in China, Australia and New Zealand, which cover with fine Merino fleece the bulk of Italian wool demand), on the other hand the spreading of synthetic fibers that have almost completely replaced the coarse wool in most of the traditional applications (Zoccola et al., 2014). In brief, suitable uses are actually limited to niche applications and the wool management represents for Italian breeders a relevant problem to deal with. Certainly, the focus on Italian wools is justified by a number of economic, environmental and cultural factors (Bacci et al., 2013). The imperative is to identify new types of products and new market opportunities, reconstructing the vertical supply chain on an innovation-and-sustainability-driven strategy. According to this approach, several initiatives of wool valorisation have been promoted in the last years in Italy by both public and private organizations. This paper analyzes some selected case studies with the aim of discussing strategic and methodological approaches for enhancing the Italian supply chains of local wools as applied in different regional socio-economic contexts.
products in the agriculture, handicraft and tourism industries. This includes three primary areas of interest: wool, native plants and educational and rural tourism. For each lines of intervention, MEDLaine defined the following set of specific key objectives with medium term perspective: (1) enhancement of the wool industry as a factor for development in rural areas; (2) enhancement of local and native plants for textile natural dyeing and medicinal applications; (3) enhancement of educational and cultural tourism as a vehicle to promote food and non-food resources. The recovery and enhancement of wool from local and native sheep breeds is meant to produce handmade textile handicrafts and green building applications, based on technological properties of local wool (high insulating power, high water repellency, high resistance to compression, etc.) and inspired by local traditions and culture. Examples of products from this area of activity include traditional carpets and innovative functional clothing using sustainable technologies and other applications for the green economy trade, such as insulating panels or biomedical technologies. The project included a total investment of about 2.6 million euro granted by the Cross-Border Cooperation Program Italy–France Maritime through two different implementation periods: from May 2009 to November 2011 and from July 2013 to July 2015. 2.2. Key actions In coherence with the project’s strategy guidelines, MED-Laine workflow consisted of the following work-packages: WP1. Local wool supply chain: – SWOT analysis and identification of development strategies for the local wool sector, through surveys, focus groups and interviews with stakeholders; – studies for selection, recovery and certification of autochthonous sheep breeds (“Pecora Nera di Arbus”, in Sardinia, “Amiatina” and “Vissana”, in Tuscany); – chemical and physical characterization of native sheep wool and analysis of mechanical properties of derived fabrics; – sensory evaluation and instrumental measurements to determine tactile properties of wool fleeces and fabrics; – realization of woolen prototypes derived from an ideas contest, “Pure Sardinian Wool”, in which more than thirty designers put forward ideas for innovative uses, layouts and characteristics for modern woolen items. WP2. Local and native plants for textile natural dyeing and functional products:
2. MED-Laine project. Science and marketing help develop new opportunities for local Mediterranean wool 2.1. Strategic context and key objectives Sardinia is the most important Italian region for sheep breeding with more than 2.9 million ewes – about 46% of total Italian flock (ISTAT, 2013) – and provides more than 1/3 of the Italian wool production. Sheep farming represents a significant activity also in Tuscany and Corsica (France)—Mediterranean regions which are socially and economically closely connected with Sardinia. Looking for turning the annual wool production (more than 4000 tons) of these Regions and its “special waste” into a real resource, thus increasing business incomes, CNR IBIMET (National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Biometeorology), in cooperation with other research centres and stakeholder associations, launched MED-Laine project. The project strategy searches for ways to promote production and marketing innovation in micro, small and medium-sized enterprises dealing with traditional high-quality
– in-depth studies of selected local and native plant species for textile natural dyeing and medicinal applications; – scientific tests to evaluate the anti-UV, anti-moth and antimicrobial proprieties of the selected plants; – assessment of the environmental impacts of production and use of natural wool dyes using a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. WP3. Rural tourism and territorial marketing: – economic analysis and consumer sciences application to wool market and products; – design and implementation of territorial marketing models; – series of cultural/educational tourism and communication events.
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Moreover, in the second implementation period (2011–2015), the MED-Laine partnership (leaded by CNR IBIMET) established a competency centre for local wools and textiles, plant extracts and derived products, equipped with a specific chemistry laboratory, with the purpose of providing expertise for innovation project support, acting both as repository of knowledge and resource pools for multiple application areas. Other actions are in progress: two wool equipped collection centres managed by private consortia in Sardinia and Tuscany; a pilot plant for the extraction of the active ingredients of plant extracts for textile dyeing, medicinal applications and functional products; development of Apps for mobile devices to create tourist circuits on-demand and a geo-localized territorial marketing service.
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– fragmentation and lack of coordination between supply chain actors. It is paradigmatic that the vertical drop of raw wool fleeces price in Sardinia in 2015 (from 1.3–0.40 D /kg) as a result of institutional problems within a sheep farmers consortium; – lack of infrastructure to support the sustainable development of the supply chain; – lack of a trademark to protect and value the local production; – technological obsolescence and high environmental impacts of traditional wool industry production systems; – poor marketing and communication strategies.
3. The project PartnerSheep in the area of Alta Murgia National Park 3.1. Strategic context and key objectives
2.3. Impact and perspectives MED-Laine achieved good results and positive impact in the technical–scientific, socio-economic and institutional spheres. Tests carried out on wool and traditional textiles showed a wide range of technological and commercial properties still unexplored and likely to open new business opportunities and applications for local wool. New methodologies have been developed and applied to wool characterization and management, which were published in scientific-divulgation books and scientific papers. For instance: fleece an fabric physic and sensory evaluation (Bacci et al., 2012; Camilli et al., 2015; Drago et al., 2010); expansion of local wool dyeing to incorporate multifunctional properties such as antiUV, anti-moth and anti-microbial, alongside natural dyeing which avoids the use of synthetic chemicals. New uses of wool have been proposed based on its specific technological properties which offer added value to its applications, for example in the green building sector. Two farmers consortia have been created for wool trade in Sardinia and Tuscany with immediate positive effects on price increase for greasy wool. For example, in Sardinia 700 integrated sheep farmers sold their raw wool in 2012 and 2013 for 100% more than in the past two years. Moreover, the various cultural tourism events made a relevant contribution to raising awareness of the benefits and commercial implications of wool within the industry as well as among the general public. The success and response of initiatives such as a design competition for wool products, a touring exhibition of woolen prototypes, seminaries on sensorial analysis, clearly showed how, with renewed design and ideas, wool can definitely be brought back into fashion. As far as the institutional impacts are concerned, the intense effort in networking and cross-border cooperation allowed to a Framework Agreement of Cooperation between Sassari and Grosseto Province embodies the success of the Project in drawing the attention of the Public Administration to issues and potentialities of local wool industry. The agreement, that involved also other crucial stakeholders as the North Sardinia Chamber of Commerce, led to a common strategy and vision on the foreseen developments of wool sector. The MED-Laine results were included in the policies framework of local supply chain valorisation also in Corsica. The project showed that the application and commercial potentials of local wools are interesting and promising. The challenge for this area lies in improving the technology used by the producers use and in restructuring the supply chain. Indeed, MED-Laine represented a positive experience and offered a small but significant contribution for effective valorisation of this neglected heritage. However, in order to move from pilot initiatives to large-scale practices we have to face the challenge of economic sustainability which is still a long way to go. The main problems and structural weaknesses of the local wools sector highlighted by MED-Laine, and to be considered for promoting new actions, are outlined below:
All the considerations in the introduction underpinned this second case study which follows an initiative of the “Murgia Viva” Consortium whose members (8 sheep farmers) in 2011, at the shearer season, aggregated 45 sheep farmers; 18 tons of wool were collected and given to a single dealer negotiating a price of 0.35 D /kg. Thus this positive result helped them become aware that the core feature of the success was the aggregation. Based on this experience, in 2012, the members of “Murgia Viva” Consortium launched the ParterSheep project partly funded by the Alta Murgia National Park. The project was thought to be central to the idea of increasing market value to at least the cost of sheep shearing (Dibenedetto et al., 2013). Meanwhile farmers should increase their ability to make system, then including other objectives to be achieved in collaboration, such as the enhancement of the traditional activities of sheep farming (i.e., dairy production). Thus, for a period of three years the workflow consisted of three steps scheduled each year from April to the next February. Step 1: Preparatory courses for wool sorters In April, the preparatory courses, mainly addressed to sheepfarmers, were systematically held in the headquarters of the Alta Murgia Park. Step 2: Organization of shearing and wool collection From May to July, the wool used to be collected and put into bales, tagged with the logo of the Alta Murgia Park, the farmer’s name, and all relevant information for traceability purpose. The bales were loaded into shipping trucks and sent to the Consortium “The Wool Company” in Miagliano (Biella). There, flocked and wool items of each bale were sorted for their specific end use. Step 3: Wool sale Most woolgrowers asked “The Wool Company” to sell the wool in their behalf, while a small group of them chose the opportunity of transforming their small lots of greasy raw wool into washed wool or dyed yarn. Usually in February, “The Wool Company” sent the proceeds from sale to each single farmer together with a report card indicating the assessment of the evaluation process and wool sale reports.
3.2. Impact and perspectives PartnerSheep achieved good results as to the aggregation attitude of the farmers. Actually, from the initial group of 45 woolgrowers the number gradually increased to 113, as well as the number of wool tons, so that, while at the beginning only two trucks (each shipping 18 tons of wool) were sent to Biella, for the second and third year they were three and four respectively. Unfortunately, the proceeds from sale did not increased as expected; they averaged 0.50 D /kg, but with a range of possible values from 0.25 D /kg to 1.2 D /kg, according to wool quality (Dibenedetto et al., 2014).
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The strong points of this experience is that the report cards allowed a classification of woolgrowers according to the accuracy in filling and assembling the wool bales; thus on one hand some of the less expert farmers were driven to better their techniques, on the other hand, a group was found that could not be helped. This classification allows selecting the worst woolgrowers and leaving them out of further plans, because the cost of wool sorting carried out by “The wool Company” was spread over the group. This means that “good farmers” had to pay for the time spent to sort the dirty wool of the few “bad farmers”. The weak point is that, as the shipping cost per kg was supported by the Alta Murgia National Park, from now on, in lack of funding, the cost of trucks for Biella will be not affordable and alternative solutions need to be found. At present, the Murgia Viva Consortium is keeping in touch with the woolgrowers in order to check if they will be partaking in the new initiatives aiming at consolidating PartnerSheep results. To the purpose, the critical mass for growth and competitiveness must be reached as soon as possible. New groups of woolgrowers from southern Apulia as well as from Calabria seem to want to join the PartnerSheep group and these are positive signs of moving forward. The above positive feedback needs to be channeled in the directions consistent with the overall sustainable strategy such as the development of value added wool processing and re-positioning production in the rural sector on a purely commercial basis. These goals are among the goals pursued by the on-going project PLAUTO, focused on the enhancement of local and native wools and funded by Apulian Regional Administration. In conclusion, steps have been taken by the wool, turning from “special waste” to resource (even if with small profit); now the challenge is to consolidate the acquired results and go further. There are grounds to be cautiously optimistic and PLAUTO is an opportunity, which all those involved in PartnerSheep must make good use. 4. The native sheep’s wool: the project PLAUTO in Apulia 4.1. Strategic context and key objectives Apulia is another Italian region having an ancient pastoral tradition that, notwithstanding the progressive contraction of these last years both in the number of farms and in the heads reared, still occupies a significant position in the economy of Apulia. In 2013 Apulian sheep numbered around 280,000, amounting to an annual total of 560 tons of wool. The previously described case studies show that things do seem to be changing, although the lean figures checked for sale are still far from covering the cost of shearing. Actually, in the context of the current economic difficulties, a renewed interest in wool-based products, can be strategic for future advancement of Murgia hills (Bari Province) and Capitanata (Foggia Province) where pastoralism and livestock rearing have been always practiced. Based on this conviction, in 2013 the Section of Clinical Veterinary and Animal Production of DETO, Department of the University of Bari, in collaboration with stakeholders associations have responded to the notice for the public call for project proposals for research and experimentation in agriculture (B.U.R.P. n. 59 del 02/05/2013). The proposed three-year project, aiming at promoting and implementing skills, procedures and new organization models targeted to recover and enhance Apulian wool sheep (Carrino et al., 2014), has been considered eligible for a total funding of 150,000.00 D. 4.2. Key actions According to the project aims and objectives PLAUTO will consist of the following steps:
WP1. Setting up of an inter-provincial centre for wool harvest, pre-selection and sorting. Based on the past experiences gained in the management of the wool question in different Apulian areas, the farmer stakeholders involved in this project will gather farmers according to the sheep breed reared, the most frequent being: “Gentile di Puglia” in the northern part of Apulia (province of Foggia), “Altamurana” and “Comisana” in the central part (provinces of Bari and BarlettaAndria-Trani), and “Leccese” and “Sarda” in the southern part (provinces of Brindisi and Lecce). The wool will then be harvested in different centres (one or two per area) where pre-selection and sorting according to the quality of fleece hair, will be carried out by young skilled workers who will move from one centre to another. WP2. Preparation of a code of practice setting out procedural guidelines for the production of “Apulian wools” in order to develop quality production routines. The guidelines document will be clearly designed and easy to read. It will include the management procedures which mostly affect the wool quality (feeding, genetic background of the animals, sanitation, animal welfare), particularly the aspects concerning the sheep shearing, the wool sorting and packaging. To further develop and implement these pilot activities, sustainability indicators will be proposed such as pastures availability, grazing practices, and the numbers of animals per hectare; and this in order to praise the wright farmers and encourage to adopt good practices the others. WP3. The creation and evaluation of a pilot ‘micro’ supply chain for the textile processing of Apulian wools. To the purpose, two production segments will be analyzed. i.) The first will focus on the production of high-standard handcrafted textile products, made with professional frames, entirely handcrafted and with patterns of the tradition revised in a modern key. The work will be carried out at the workshop of Uggiano La Chiesa managed by the “Le Costantine” Foundation. After the sheep are sheared, the fleece needs wet cleaning with hot water to emulsify the wool grease, and the resulting sludge disposal is a potential pollutant. After the introduction of environmental taxation, in Italy there are only very few wool processing companies, all located in the North of Italy. Thus, in the absence of indigenous Apulian companies, the Consortium “The Wool Company” of Biella will be committed to processing the fiber from fleece onwards. • The second segment will focus on the production process of wool yarn and the marketing of handicrafts directly from farms, and their consortia. WP4. Investigation on the possible commercial valorisation of Apulian wool in innovative non textile sectors such as green building services or plant-growing sector. – Analysis of the application of thermal insulation in Italy. State of the supply of thermal insulation products in natural wool (production process and types of goods carried, thermal performance, actors, profit margins). – Experimental trials on wool devices obtained from waste of wool aiming at checking the feasibility of their use as mulches (with the synergic action of anti-nematode organic molecules) in orchards or flower-growing industry. Unfortunately the project did not start in 2014 because the Apulian regional administration, in order to fully comply with the terms of the EU’s Stability and Growth Pact (SGP European Stability Pact), postponed any financing decisions, rescheduling them from October 2014 to June 2015. Thus PLAUTO will hopefully start at the
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beginning of July 2015. This will imply a delay in the scheduled actions connected to the sheep-shearing season, namely most of the WP1, which will necessarily be undertaken and completed in two years. However WP2, WP3 and WP4 will freely start, go on and reach their goals, according to the plan.
clude the other, but rather enrich and complement one another. The increase in cooperative initiatives among breeders and the intensification of networking activities among them, local government administrations and research centres still represents the key factor to achieve fully sustainability over the long term.
4.3. Impact and perspectives
Conflict of interest
It is probably too early to say what will be the most valuable outcome of this project and any evaluation of its impacts may be premature, however the project perspective concerning the potential beneficiaries may be stressed. Actually, partners involved in the textile sector (“The Wool Company” Consortium, “Le Costantine” Foundation) can benefit from the projects results. Similarly, a target group will hopefully empower, and take advantage both of the promoted activities and networking, the beneficiaries being agricultural farms and their consortia, didactic farms, skilled seasonal workers (sheep-shearers and wool sorters), entrepreneurs involved in the textile sector, entrepreneurs involved in the greening sector as well as those involved in orchards or flower-growing industry.
The authors Vagnoni E., Carrino C., Dibenedetto N., Pieragostini E., Consenti B., certify that they have not a financial or personal relationship with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias this paper entitled “The enhancement of native sheep’s wool: selected case studies from Italian regions”.
5. Concluding remarks In spite of the very negative economic trend of the last decades and facing the low quality of Italian sheep wool, efforts on local wools are justified by economic, environmental and cultural factors. Local wool encompasses a wide range of potential (sustainable) uses, which may find new opportunities in the current greening process of European economy. Removing bottlenecks to innovation in the sheep farming system, handicraft and textiles industries, preserving and boosting at the same time the cultural and symbolic capital inherent to local wools, appears to be the main pathway for enhancing the local wool supply chain. A real innovation process requires removing barriers of prejudice and an openness to new ideas and suggestions to improve current knowledge. The assessment of economic and environmental sustainability of production processes has to be the main criterion for finding the best suitable use of wool, from clothing and fashion to green building and fine chemicals applications. No hypothesis should be ruled out from the start, nor any solution should pre-
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