Merino's influence expands

By ELLEN READ

New Zealand-based clothing maker Icebreaker - the world's leading merino wear firm - is in the vanguard of an increasingly robust merino industry, extending its contract with Merino NZ to take around 1.45 million kilograms of wool over the next three years.

Rising merino sales are having spinoff benefits for local processors. A $14 million, three-year contract with US clothing maker Smart Wool, for example, means extra work for a Timaru company which is combing the contract.

About 29 per cent of the $100 million annual merino clip is consumed by contracts, with the balance selling at auction.

Merino NZ chief executive John Brakenridge is keen to lift the contract component to 35 per cent over the next couple of years, to give growers greater certainty.

Merino fibre's natural advantages - it is breathable and can absorb more water than the synthetic alternative, polypropylene, without feeling wet - contribute to its top performance in the active wear market.

Brakenridge said Merino NZ had developed strong partnerships with leading manufacturers and marketers in New Zealand, who had added significant value to merino fibre that is now being exported. Production had doubled in the past 10 to 12 years.