Fredrik Klingsell in Norrtälje got his five ewes just over a year ago. He has them mainly as a hobby, and to be able to make use of the meat. But the sheep also provide some wool, and he has already noticed that it is difficult to get rid of. He still has the wool that was cut last spring.
– You almost have to give it away if you want to get rid of it, he says.
Most sheep owners in Sweden have their animals primarily for the meat. Wool is seen as a by-product. The average size of the Swedish herd is just over 30 ewes per farm, according to the Swedish Sheep Breeding Association.
Difficult to find buyers – calls in wool brokers
Gudrun Haglund-Eriksson, chairman of the Swedish Sheep Breeding Association, says that many sheep farmers find it difficult to find the right buyer for the wool, especially for smaller volumes.
The work can be facilitated by so-called wool brokers who buy wool and pass it on. But according to the association, they are sparse in the country, which leads to long transport distances, and the wool needs to be sorted before it is taken away. All in all, it means an effort – which rarely pays off.
– It must be possible to get paid for the raw wool, so that it pays to deliver it to a wool station. And the wool broker must also be paid to sort it. It is much cheaper to import, says Gudrun Haglund-Eriksson.
Calling for political help
Every year, over 1,700 tons of wool and yarn are bought in from abroad, according to the sheep breeding association, which is calling for political help with Swedish profitability.
In Norway, the government gives subsidies to sheep owners who take care of their wool. But Rural Affairs Minister Peter Kullgren says via his press secretary that there are no political initiatives linked to that issue at the moment.
– Foreign wool is not bad. But if we are to be afraid of our own, the Swedish – everything from the wool, the biological diversity and the jobs here in Sweden – then it is our wool that we should benefit, says Gudrun Haglund-Eriksson.