Dip in wool price hits Shropshire sheep farmers
Sheep farmers in Shropshire will see a huge dip in the price they are paid for their wool this year.
The British Wool Marketing Board (BWMB) has warned that average producer payments for the coming season will be 77pence per kg – down from 124p/kg last year.
Bosses have said the dip is due to a turbulent 12 months of trading but they are confident things will pick up.
Howard Sinister has 150 sheep at Castle Hill Farm, Spoonley near Market Drayton, and said it is difficult to make any money on wool, but things do look to be improving.
He said: "At one stage the price paid for wool barely covered the cost of the shearing.
"It has been very bad in the past but the price did go up slightly last year so we can hope it will go up again.
"Selling the wool is only a small part of my business, it is more or less a by product as it's just once a year.
"If it was the main thing you'd have to find a good grade of wool.
"At one time wool was being exported to places like China but it varies a lot for the breeds of sheep and what they can use the wool for."
The BWMB said the dip in trade was a direct result of slowing demand from China and reduced sales in to the carpet sector.
But they said a strong finish to the trading period had helped prices recover and meant producers would hopefully recover further next season.
BWMB chairman and English northern board member, Malcolm Corbett, said: "There are no signs of demand slipping at the moment and there are signs the market in China is rising again.
"There are clear signs of an improvement in the US economy too which will be of major benefit to wool sales."
Oliver Cartwright, NFU Shropshire spokesman, said: "This is disappointing news as the wool price was at a low but had risen in recent years which was encouraging.
"We do not want to see wool as a waste product, however, the current price will not cover the cost of shearing so farmers will be making a small loss.
"In the grand scheme of things, though, sheep farm profitability is dictated by the lamb price and this is what will be of concern to Shropshire sheep farmers."
He added: "I must also commend the work of the wool marketing board who are operating in a market influenced by global trade."
Val Whiston farms as Whiston Brothers with his brother Ron in Hodnet.
They used to keep more than 1,500 sheep but now only have sheep through the winter before selling them on.
He said: "It was worth nothing when we were doing it. It has not been worth anything until recently, really.
"The amount it cost to shear the sheep would be less than what the wool would come to.
"You had to roll the wool up into bales and then tie it up and put it on a lorry."
Richard Ward, who farms at Springs Farm in Spoonley near Market Drayton, has 200 ewes.
He said: "It will be a little bit of a blow but there is not a lot we can do about it, it is a worldwide thing.
"I don't rely on the money from wool but years ago you used to be able to buy a tractor with the price of it.
"Now you hope it covers the cost of shearing.
"It is a pity we have to rely on people like China. You'd think they could find uses for it in Britain."
