LONDON – The Woolmark Company has launched a new initiative, Woolmark+, aimed at driving the wool industry toward a sustainable and nature-positive future. This work seeks to unite woolgrowers, supply chain partners, and global brands to promote low-impact production, enhance animal welfare, and support woolgrower livelihoods.
Woolmark+ introduces a roadmap with 13 practical initiatives designed to regenerate nature, reduce carbon emissions, and optimise productivity across the wool supply chain. The programme’s focus extends beyond the industry’s traditional net-zero carbon goals, instead emphasising a “nature-positive” approach that aims to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030.
This strategy aligns with broader ecological goals of carbon sequestration, biodiversity recovery, and sustainable livelihoods.
A key component of Woolmark+ is the introduction of an insetting programme that establishes the foundation for a wool insetting market. This programme connects woolgrowers with global brands committed to meeting their emission reduction targets through on-farm, nature-based solutions. Additionally, the initiative includes a methane emissions reduction programme targeting livestock, which has already shown promising results, including a 50 per cent reduction in methane emissions when sheep graze on specific feed types like Asparagopsis.
Woolmark+ also introduces the Nature Positive Farming Specification, developed in collaboration with woolgrowers and industry experts, to provide credible measures of on-farm environmental performance. This specification will enable brands to make defensible claims about their sustainability efforts, backed by detailed ecological assessments of wool farms.
The initiative further aims to foster circularity in the industry through the newly launched Woolmark Recycled sub-brand. This certification encourages the production of recycled wool products.
John Roberts, managing director of The Woolmark Company, highlighted the critical role that woolgrowers, particularly in Australia, can play in the transition to a low-emission, nature-positive market.
Woolmark+ is not only a strategy for environmental stewardship but also a “holistic approach to supporting woolgrowers and ensuring the continued demand for wool.” Through research, training, and new investment opportunities, the initiative aims to enhance climate resilience, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve productivity in wool production.
