AWEX is excited to announce that the new Australian Wool Sustainability Scheme (AWSS) has been launched at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide on 16 April 2024.

The new program, including new standards and processes, will be in place from 1 July 2024 and sets a new standard for wool production and sourcing.

A review in 2023 highlighted the need to evolve AWEX’s SustainaWOOL program to meet increasing needs of the marketplace. The SustainaWOOL Integrity Scheme is being relaunched as the Australian Wool Sustainability Scheme (AWSS).

The Australian Wool Sustainability Scheme is aligned with industry sustainability frameworks and commitments relevant to the Australian wool industry: the Australian Sheep Sustainability Framework  and the Australian Agricultural Sustainability Framework .

AWSS accreditation signals that wool has been produced responsibly and sustainably by woolgrowers committed to caring for the land, their sheep, people, industry and the fibre.

The scope of AWSS covers practices from farm to fibre focused on demonstrating:

• the responsible stewardship of natural resources,
• health and wellbeing of sheep,
• care for the people, customers and communities,
• vitality and resilience of industry,
• and fibre quality and integrity

The Australian Wool Sustainability Scheme will move from a membership model to an accreditation model.

There are two pathways of accreditation – SustainaWOOL and ResponsiWOOL – reflecting the production diversity in Australia, and the differing sustainability expectations of the global market. They differ only in the accepted practices for flystrike control; all other requirements are identical.

• SustainaWOOL accreditation means wool is produced to the Standard of animal health and wellbeing practices for controlling flystrike, which does not include mulesing.

• ResponsiWOOL accreditation means wool is produced to the Standard of animal health and wellbeing practices for controlling flystrike, including breech modification with appropriate pain relief.

Maintaining market access is central to AWSS, leveraging our reputation for unparalleled product integrity, sustainability, and quality, to secure and expand our position in global markets.

The Australian Wool Sustainability Scheme meets the needs of brands – credibly verifying the wool inputs they source, satisfying their sustainability and quality needs, and providing trusted traceability foundations to support reporting requirements through the use of WoolClip and eBale.

Existing SustainaWOOL Integrity Scheme members will be contacted by AWEX in the coming weeks about the changes and the opportunity to transition to the Australian Wool Sustainability Scheme.

For more information, view the AWSS media release.