Merino breeders from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia will set out for the NSW Central West town of Wellington Saturday for the inaugural SRS� National Merino Field Day.
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Organisers have planned a valuable day at the Wellington Showground with more than 20 SRS� Merino studs on display, to discuss with breeders the innovative and productive breeding system that has made SRS� a benchmarked leader in quality Merino stock.
SRS� Merino Group president Norman Smith has suggested this would be a showcase opportunity for the SRS� Merino studs to present their genetics for viewing.
"The SRS� breeding system is based on improving the density, length and quality of wool grown by animals, that are environmentally fit and easy to manage," he said.
"This breeding system has been applied to Merino flocks, alpaca and angora goat herds throughout Australia and internationally.
"The day will be a valuable opportunity to hear from our guest speaker Dr James Rowe from Sheep CRC.
"Stud breeders will be on hand to answer questions and show the quality of their stock."
A range of market stalls will bring a selection of regional products, along with trade sites for lamb and wool producers.
SRS� Merino lamb cooking demonstrations will be carried out by Olive-a-Twist chef Rebecca Sutton.
Based in Mudgee, Ms Sutton will delight the crowd with cooking demonstrations highlighting the benefits of SRS� quality lamb dishes and Central West regional market products.
"Wholesome meals will be demonstrated including slow cook meals and quick presentation dishes. So there will be something for everyone," Ms Sutton said.
Dr Jim Watts has researched the required specifications to ensure SRS� Merino breeding programs meet clear specifications. These requirements are met through the following SRS� breeding program objectives:
o genetically fit animals
o high number of lambs weaned
o high wool fibre density and length on a plain bodied animal
o exceptional wool quality
o ethical and sustainable wool production with the use of breeding Values as selection aids.
In recent years, the wool industry has faced major obstacles and issues in relation to potential mulesing bans, shearers objecting to shear wrinkly sheep and sheep losses from body strike during wet summers.
It is for this reason that over 50 Merino studs and over 1200 commercial merino flocks across Australia have changed their breeding practices in line with the SRS� breeding system.
Tighter margins for wool producers have seen a significant shift in many Merino flocks to selection for more lambs and better carcases to increase profitability.
This has lead to the development of highly-productive ewes and rams, able to generate multiple sources of income.
The key driver has been to breed a plain-bodied Merino sheep.
Selecting for high fibre density and length results in exceptional wool quality and processing performance.
The wool fibres are changed genetically and permanently to be fine in diameter, long, highly aligned, smooth surfaced and remarkably uniform in diameter and length.
For more than 15 years, the SRS� Group has been producing Merino fleeces of unparalleled softness and quality, delivering excellent processing performance and high-quality finished products to its textile and retail customers.
The yarns made from SRS� wool are considered soft and silky, with very good natural strength and elasticity.
Therefore the fabrics made from these yarns feel more like cashmere than a traditional wool fabric with excellent draping qualities, a natural ability to stretch, less creasing and a deep rich appearance after dying.
A Japanese knitwear manufacturer, reported that the garment quality of 10 per cent cashmere and 90 per cent 18.0 micron SRS� Merino wool is the same as 100 per cent cashmere of 16.0 micron.
The skin characteristics of SRS� Merino ewes is thin and loose, providing a large surface area for growing wool.
The looseness of the skin becomes obvious when it is extended. If a high density and length of fibres accompanies the large surface area created by the skin's looseness, then the fleece weight of the animal is likely to be very high.
SRS� Merino sheep have proven on average to carry 10% more wool that is 2.5microns finer than the preferred traditional Merino. This is especially evident when feed availability is restricted.
As part of the ram breeding programs, SRS® Merino stud breeders now measure the density and length of wool fibres of their young sires. These additional measurements are providing us with pinpoint accuracy and allowing us to produce 'new generation wools'.
All 40 Merino studs, monitored by Dr Watts have stopped mulesing their sheep and some of their commercial clients have followed suit. "The transition from a sheep that is wrinkly and requires mulesing to a sheep that is plain bodied and does not need to be mulesed can be less than 5 years, and in some cases as rapid as 3 years." said Mr Watts
"These mules-free Merino sheep are already out there in large numbers and are naturally resistant to all forms of flystrike including the most severe and challenging body strike outbreaks during wet summers. There is no reduction in wool quality and quantity, in fact we have observed improvements, and definitely the environmental fitness and fecundity of these animals have improved." Mr Watts said.
This no-mules component of the program is essential to future markets for Australian wool, according to Australian Wool Innovations (AWI) Group Manager Market Intelligence and Reporting Dr Paul Swan. At a recent Outlook conference in Canberra Dr Swan said "The luxury apparel market is the fastest growing segment of the apparel business" he said "Our challenge is to reinforce and communicate wools wellness and sustainability credentials to brands, retailers and consumers".
The SRS® National Field Day will commence at 10am 6th September 2014. For more information about SRS® breeding programs and the SRS® National Field Day visit www.srsmerinos.com.