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A major shortage of shearing contractors is impeding progress with the 2022 sheep clip across NI.
Where farmers have exhausted all avenues to source a skilled shearer, many flock owners have been left with little option but to carry out the task on their own.
Others have had to resort to hauling sheep over a considerable distance to the shearing contractors’ own premises just to get animals clipped. That adds significantly to the cost of clipping animals, which are in the region of £2.00 to £2.50/head this year.
The shortage of shearers comes from a combination of factors. But fundamentally, there are fewer contractors offering the service, whether due to retirement or the labour-intensive nature of the work.
There are also plenty of employment opportunities off farm at present. A number of farmers indicate that they could have as much as 50% of mature sheep still to clip, with upland and hill farmers most impacted by the skill shortage.
Even where farmers have managed to secure the services of a shearing contractor, there are other factors that have caused delays. In particular, frequent rain showers mean farmers are having to gather smaller groups of animals for housing overnight before clipping the following day, rather than gathering the full flock in one go.
Wool outlook
Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, the chair of Ulster Wool, Brendan Kelly confirmed the 2022 wool intake is currently down on previous years. He remains upbeat on price, and wants farmers to deliver this year’s clip as soon as possible.
“Storing wool is not straightforward. When stored on farm in the wrong conditions, moisture will affect the quality of the clip and devalue wool. So the earlier this year’s clip is delivered, the better,” said Kelly.
He added that Ulster Wool/British Wool has received a lot of enquiries from customers wanting to source product, which indicates that the demand is there.
“Hopefully, this will translate into strong prices being passed back to our farmers, and at the very least, we would be looking to match last year’s prices. Our door is always open to farmers for wool, whether they are existing members or new suppliers,” he said.
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