Near worthless sheeps wool used for farm roads and tomatoes
Sheep farmers at National Ploughing Championship launch in Laois
The dramatic loss of value for the finest lambswool or sheepswool was outlined by sheep breeders, during the launch of the 2024 National Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska.
Samantha McGinty holding her lamb Anna May as she meets her namesake, Anna May McHugh. Photo: Alf Harvey
The purebred lamb will be used for breeding purposes by her owner, Samantha McGinty from Donadea, Kildare, secretary of the National Sheep Breeders Association.
“The breed is used for commercial reasons, for meat and breeding.
Wool is not a viable commercial product for Irish sheep farmers any more she said.
“Any wool is not worth selling,” she told the Leinster Express / Laois Live.
“The market in China is not using it since before Covid.
“It has been replaced by cheaper synthetic materials like nylon,” Samantha said.
She uses the wool for a strikingly different purpose.
“We use it to put under the roads on the farm. It's peaty soil, so the wool holds it and then naturally decomposes,” she said.
Thomas Elmore from Dundalk in Louth was there with his daughter Aoife Rose, 11, who was also getting a pet of the lamb. He was there to represent the North Country Cheviot Society.
Aoife Rose Elmore, 11, with Anna May the lamb. Photo: Leinster Express
“It costs 30 times more to shear a sheep than you get for the wool.
“It costs €3 a sheep. You get 10 cent to 50 cent a kilo.
“You have to shear them. It's a welfare issue, it's for hygiene," he said.
He has his own use for his unwanted wool.
“We use it to put over the tomatoes as a fleece to keep the frost away,” Thomas said.
There is one commercial use that is not being exploited in Ireland.
The wool could be used as a natural insulation for houses, particularly favoured by renovators of historic buildings in Ireland.
“It's costly. The wool has to be stretched and treated. Nobody does it in Ireland.
“It's amazing that nobody can find a byproduct use for it,” the sheep farmer said.
The 93rd All Ireland Ploughing Championships take place in Ratheniska from September 17 to 19, with champion livestock on display as part of the event.