Wool
If Merino is your last name, it is clear that you are serious about wool. As you know, wool comes from sheep and – again, we tell it like it is – sheep are not necessarily good for the environment because of their methane and CO2 emissions. But the other side of the coin is that wool is one of the more sustainable materials used for clothing. It is natural, fully biodegradable, free from plastic, recyclable. And best of all – the sheep regrow the wool! What’s more, wool gives you warmth and comfort, which makes you want to wear it more.
Added bonus in these times: if you wear wool, you can turn down the heat! Because almost all Joe’s are made of 100% Merino wool, our products are actually 100% biodegradable. They shed no microplastics through the laundry waste water, unlike popular mixes like acrylic wool blends. Weighing the pros and cons of wool, Joe seeks to make the most sustainable pullover of the highest quality at an affordable price. We buy our wool through a reputable German supplier called Südwolle. Südwolle is an authoritative institute that not only guards the quality of the wool, but also the wellbeing of the sheep and the shearers. Südwolle buys only from producers that comply with the four core values: Animal welfare, environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and the best wool quality. This is a two-way street: The sheep’s life quality is reflected in the quality of the wool. In other words: Healthy sheep, healthy coat. All the wool used by Joe meets the four core values.
Mulesing
What exactly is mulesing? Mulesing is a controversial procedure on sheep. Part of the skin around a lamb’s tail is cut away. This is done to prevent flies from laying eggs under the skin, causing the parasitic infection called flystrike (myasis). There are some common misunderstandings about mulesing that we should like to clear. The most common misconception perhaps is that all wool farmers use this practice (if necessary). But mulesing is practised only in Australia, because this is the only place where this specific fly occurs.
To Joe Merino animal welfare, transparency and a fair product chain are not just empty marketing phraes. We have been buying mulesing-free wool since 2019. The sheep that provide our wool do not go through this painful procedure. If you don’t believe us: most of our wool comes from sheep farms in New Zealand, Argentina and South Africa. Countries where mulesing is not practised. Also all of our wool is RWS certified. RWS stands for Responsible Wool Standard. This certification promotes best practices and transparency throughout the chain. From farmers who take animal welfare very seriously, up to the ultimate wool product.
We buy our yarns from Südwolle Group. A prominent and renowned German family business that is recognised worldwide for its quality, reliability and sustainable practices. We buy only non-mulesing yarns from them. And we have no problem paying a little more for wool from happy sheep. Südwolle strictly enforces ethical and sustainable production methods and works exclusively with certified farms that meet international standards, like the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS). A standard that guarantees not only that the wool comes from non-mulesed sheep, but advocates animal welfare in general, responsible land use and fair working conditions.
Joe works with a short, closed and transparant product chain. That’s how we can be so certain that all Joe Merino products are actually made from wool from non-mulesed sheep. For that you have our word.
