From 15 to 17 of October 2021, took place in Baños de Montemayor (Extremadura, Spain) the “Second Wool Party. The programme included various activities, such as storytelling, literary encounters, artistic experiences, singer-songwriters, artisans market, lectures, workshops, experience tables, concert, textile route, presentations, and master class.
According to the program and within the cycle of lectures, Roberto Ballesteros (www.innogestiona.es) made a presentation based on the results of the report delivered in 2019, within the POPTEC Prodehesa/Montado project (https://prodehesamontado.eu/), which was entitled “The Value chain of Iberian merino wool”. After the presentation, there was a space for debate. Through the following link you can view the lectures presented on October 16th:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xgc6NHOc5DU&t=9409s
Brief conclusion on the development of the activity: during the debate, the audience raised questions. Among these issues, the preponderance of China as the main international wool buyer, as well as the need for existing and futures wool washers in the Iberian Peninsula to ensure the traceability of small batches of wool from artisan projects. Possible strategies were also mentioned to defend Iberian merino wool through value chains fully developed within the peninsula, enhancing its competitiveness based on quality, lower environmental impact, sustainable fashion and socio-cultural values, as opposed to models developed in Asia, based primarily on low-cost, high-environmental impact products and processes. The treatment and reuse of the residual water generated after washing was identified as one of the main pending scientific-technological challenges.
