Sheep farmers see ‘light at end of tunnel’ as wool prices reach 10-year high

Friday, 23 January 2026

For the first time in many years, farmers are making money out of wool.

WoolWorks Grower Direct general manager Jason Everson said wool prices have gone up by 30% in the last 12 months, and now the wool price is at a high that the industry has not seen for the past decade.

“Farmers are making money from wool again, and a changing landscape will likely keep prices elevated,” he said.

“Traditionally when prices become too high Chinese buyers would stop buying, leading to lower prices.

“However, with a reduced international wool clip available and scoured New Zealand wool sought after in India and Europe, this isn’t the case any more.”

Full-length fleece, or 12 months’ growth, is currently selling at about $5.20 per kilogram clean, an increase of about $1.25 per kilo compared with the same time last year.

India now takes over 20% of the New Zealand clip, and sheep numbers are declining in all major wool-growing countries, with both Australia and Britain reporting high wool prices.

British wool market reports also show a 10-year high for specific categories of wool. As a result, buyers and manufacturers cannot delay buying wool, he said, and prices remain elevated.

“Chinese manufacturers are constantly developing new products and fabrics that use wool, and sectors such as bedding that traditionally use down are now also using more wool products.”

Southland farmer Adrian Lawson recently sold wool through WoolWorks Grower Direct at an online auction.

He said he got $1.41 more per clean kilo for his ewe fleece than he got last year, fetching $5.22kg clean, the highest he has made in 10 years.

He said he was now making money from his wool, receiving well above his shearing costs. “There’s light at the end of the tunnel, and it seems prices will keep rising.”

Rachel Shearer from PGG Wrightson Wool said strong wool prices have opened 2026 with renewed confidence, and early indicators suggested the momentum was holding.

After a rapid rise before Christmas, the market had continued to hold, which she said was particularly encouraging.

At the most recent Christchurch auction, exporters were struggling to fill existing orders because of limited volumes coming through, while new orders were also entering the market.

China continued to underpin the market with buying pressure increasing not just in New Zealand, but also internationally.

“We’re also hearing the same story out of Britain, where prices have been rising steadily and more wool is now heading to China,” she said. “That would have been unheard of in the past.”

Shearer said strong wool had been a longstanding challenge for farmers, with decades spent in low price territory.

“This time last year we were getting excited about breaking 400 cents clean. Yesterday, most crossbred fleece types at Christchurch were well above 500c clean,” she said on Monday.

Many wool types have lifted by about a dollar since September, and the strong wool indicator across both islands was now sitting close to the 500c clean level.

She said more growers were now covering beyond their shearing costs, which was a significant shift from recent years.

Everson said the New Zealand Government’s announcement last year that state agencies would prefer the use of wool was positive for the ongoing domestic market, further supporting prices.

The weakening US dollar, down about 8% since July last year, was also good for New Zealand farmers.

“With European nations requiring life-cycle assessments of materials, wool is showing its green credentials and becoming a fibre of choice,” he said.

“Farmers can focus on woolshed preparation and that supplying quality wool means better prices. An extra 50c per kilogram can make a difference.”