Project Overview
Commodities
- Animals: sheep
- Animal Products: fiber, fur, leather
Practices
- Crop Production: nutrient management
- Education and Training: farmer to farmer
- Farm Business Management: cooperatives
- Sustainable Communities: community development, new business opportunities
Proposal abstract:
Project Focus:
The Pennsylvania Sheep and Wool Growers Association (PSWGA), in partnership with Penn State Extension, is seeking financial assistance to engage the widely dispersed groups of sheep and wool producers in Pennsylvania to collaborate as a community to address the need for improved wool income opportunities by exploring the feasibility of establishing wool cooperatives for aggregation, processing and local supply of wool and wool pellets for innovative agricultural applications. This concept arose in response to the economic need identified by Pennsylvania sheep farmers, and would address a limitation cited by farmers in the Northeast SARE funded project "Exploring Low-Phosphorous Wool Pellets as Fertilizer and Soil Conditioner for Vegetables" project report as well as in other research projects considering the use of wool as a soil amendment.
Solution and Approach:
Through outreach and education, we will enable farmers to share knowledge, collaborate in a wool pellet production effort, and develop a business model for sustainable local cooperative wool supply business networks. We will also seek to better understand and anticipate the requirements of niche market customers by supporting research and testing of wool and wool pellets in innovative agricultural applications.
The development of a viable cooperative business model and knowledge base will not only aid the economic sustainability of sheep farmers participating in the project but also provide regional cohorts resources needed in creating their own enterprises, while enabling further innovative uses of wool by supplying wool pellets to local growers and agronomic researchers.
Project objectives from proposal:
Sheep and wool farmers in Pennsylvania will connect, share knowledge, communicate concerns, and collaboratively address the need for improved wool income opportunities by developing a business model and knowledge base useful for farmers in Pennsylvania and the Northeast that establishes a local wool supply Cooperative business and network; creates community jobs in wool processing and logistics; generates improved wool revenue for sheep and wool producers; promotes innovation and supports testing and research to better understand and meet market requirements; addresses the concerns of growers regarding reliable supplies of wool in large quantities; and delivers wool-based materials to local growers for innovative use in agricultural applications such as nutrient management and soil quality management.