Wool stain can cost farmers 10 cents per kg

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 4, Issue 24, 11 November 1986, Page 7

Wool stain can cost farmers 10 cents per kg

Pen stain on wool, which causes fading in carpets, can seriously affect important overseas markets for New Zealand wool, according to Mr E. C. (Woody), Radford, Technical Marketing Manager with the Wool Board. "Last year was particularly bad because pastel colours were popular," he says. "Among spinners l met in Europe and the United States, 'red fade' as it is called is the most frequent eomplaint. "They may not know the

cause. but they associate it with New Zealand wool. No other wool has this problem." Chlorophyll in pen stain spreads like a green dye through the wool when it is scoured, says Mr Radford. The wool is later dyed and made into a carpet but as soon as it is exposed to sunlight, the chlorophyll rapidly fades. changing colours towards the red. "The manufacturer sees 'red fade'as a wool problem and the easiest way to avoid it is to avoid wool altogether and use synthetics instead," he says. "For retailers it is a

nightmare when carpets fade in the shop window. There can be big claims against the manufacturer who in turn claims against the spinner,"he says. Wool growers can reduce pen stain by dagging their sheep about a week before shearing and holding sheep six hours or more in a wellgra/ed paddock before shedding for shearing, Mr Radford says. Stains should be picked out on the sorting table and any badly affected mobs sold separately. "The extra care is worthwhile when the trade discounts stained wool by about 10 cents a kilogram," he says.