International Wool Textile Organization (IWTO) plans to organize a Retail Forum on May 20 as part of its ongoing meeting from May 17-21, 2021. The meeting is focusing on sustainability in the wool industry. It is being attended by Simon Cotton, CEO, Johnstons of Elgin who said, year 2020 brought changes in a single year. Amid changes to the market and places where retail sales occur, cotton flags up 2020 as the year of sustainability.

However, despite being natural, renewable, and biodegradable, wool must work much harder to present its sustainability credentials, because wool and other natural fibers rank as less sustainable that synthetic, fossil-fuel based fibres.

Panellist Veronica Bates, Former Development Consultant and World Bank Analyst added, lack of robust evidence and data to support the comparisons, and the failure of prevailing sustainability indexes to consider the socio-economic impacts of their claims on farmers and farming communities.

Olivier Segard, former IWTO Executive Committee Member and Managing Director, Segard Masurel wool traders since 1846, added, the Abelusi initiative allows traceability from farm to spinner, and covers 50-odd criteria, audited regularly, in animal welfare, environmental and social responsibility. This is a vital link in the value chain between farm and retail, meeting the demand for sustainability that Simon Cotton noticed in his customers. It is a fine example of the way the wool industry responds to challenges: through partnership and long-term relationships.