Prestigious Fashion Award Protested Over Sheep Abuse

Locals and fashion lovers in town for the presentation of the International Woolmark Prize were met with a shocking sight today, as actor and singer Naike Rivelli displayed a “bloodied sheep’s head” in front of the Duomo di Milano.

Bearing a sign that reads, “Here’s the Rest of your Wool Sweater,” the star pleaded with passersby to leave wool out of their wardrobes.

The action follows PETA’s letter to Donatella Versace, the chair of Woolmark’s panel of judges. Versace was one of the first major designers to stop using fur. The letter urged her to once again take the lead and reject wool, which is every bit as cruel.

Sheep Abuse in the Wool Industry

In the wool industry, terrified sheep are pinned down and aggressively shorn, whilst often sliced to pieces in the process. They’re trucked off to the slaughterhouse when they no longer produce enough wool to turn a profit.

Sheep grow depressed if isolated from their flock and can even detect anxiety in another sheep simply by observing their face. Farmers commonly sever lambs’ tails and castrate the males without pain relief.

PETA entities’ exposés of wool operations around the world found routine cruelty to sheep, who were beaten, punched, kicked, thrown, and slammed to the ground by workers. Because shearers are usually paid by volume, not by the hour, they’re incentivised to work quickly and often leave sheep with gaping, open wounds which are sewn shut with no pain relief.

Wool Is Fuelling the Climate Crisis

Sheep are second only to cows in the global production of methane, which is 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in warming the Earth. The wool industry also produces massive amounts of faecal waste and contributes to soil erosion and desertification of ecosystems.

The wool industry has gone to great lengths to brand wool as eco-friendly, but it’s an environmental disaster that has earned its “Class E” fibre ranking – the worst possible – from The Made-By Environmental Benchmark for Fibres.

Sheep are second only to cows in the global production of methane, a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere. Methane is far more potent than CO2, packing over 80% more warming power in its first 20 years of release into the atmosphere. Thus, raising sheep for wool is risky for the planet’s future.

Add to this the huge amounts of deforestation undertaken to make room for sheep grazing, the toxic sheep dip and manure leeching into our water supply, and the disgusting waste from abattoirs, it’s clear that while wool may be greenwashed, it’s far from green.

Plant Wools – Soft, Warm, Green and Kind

We don’t have to harm sheep to stay cosy and warm. You can make soft, snuggly knits from various plant wool yarns, like cotton, hemp, Tencel, and linen, while innovative wool upgrades, like fleece from banana plants and weeds, are always being developed!

Check out the designers and brands making a positive difference to animals by using fresh, animal-free fibres!