Preparation Steps for Wool Quality Improvement Step 1
Minimize Wool Contamination
Contamination in the domestic wool clip gives every U.S. sheep producer a bad image. Contamination lowers the overall yield or useful quality of the wool clip. Common sources of wool contamination: dirt, vegetable matter, paint, polypropylene twine, colored fibers, and tags.
The shearing area must be kept clean with frequent sweeping to reduce risk of contaminating freshly shorn fleeces.
Packaging/Labeling
Use only new and approved wool packaging materials. Used bags and packs contaminate wool and cause identification problems.
Properly label all wool packages for: grower name, line or type of wool, individual bag number, and classer number (when applicable).