Agmates

The Uniform worn by our Athletes at the Beijing Olympics has been described as Kath & Kim off to the Gym or a sucked water ice block. People are asking wheres the Green and Gold?

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What we are asking is where is the Wool?

This country was built on the sheep’s back. Our wool growers are going through an incredibly tough time, with sheep numbers plummeting to a 90 year low. What an opportunity missed to show case our great wool fibre to over 4 billion world wide viewers. Thanks for nothing AOC and designer / manufacturer company Sports Craft.

The track suit top is Nylon, made in China of course. The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) has a lot to answer for. I for one felt appalled by the the outfit - ‘what a blue Nylon track suit’

What does that tell the world about our culture and heritage? How about you?

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Have Your Say! What did you think?

Agmates Editor Steve Truman writes:

Sheep numbers in Australia have plummeted to their lowest level in more than 80 years. The once mighty wool industry is in virtual collapse - despite producers pouring hundreds of millions of their dollars into research and marketing.

Australian Bureau of Statistics has reported that sheep and lamb numbers were at 85.7 million head in the 2006-07 financial year, the lowest since 1924. Sheep population peaked in 1990 with 180 million sheep within the Island nation. Thats a decrease of 94 million in 18 years.

The only time in our nations history that sheep numbers have been lower were in the first decade of the 1900’s during the federation drought and then before that back in the 1870’s.

This decline is despite wool growers paying up to 4% levy monies for Wool industry promotion and research.

Goulburn Wool & fat lamb producer and Australian Woolgrowers Association Director Chick Olsen had this to say.

“In my opinion, the industry R&D approach to levy expenditure over the past 5 years has provided very little return for the $300 million spent in ” on farm” areas.

Indeed, on farm costs in areas such as farm labour costs, shearing, workers comp, insurance, fertiliser and other farm inputs have all risen considerably, despite the millions poured into research trying to find ways to reduce our input costs.

Many wonder how we have benefited from this huge expenditure of growers money. With over 10,000 growers leaving the industry, and a virtual collapse of wool prices over the past 4 - 5 years, it is no wonder there has been a confidence crisis in our industry” …. Read full article here.

Agmates questions are:

1. Who is accountable for this appalling waste of sheep farmers money?

2. How does any organization spend hundreds of millions of dollars of farmers money, only to achieve such devastating outcomes.

3. This is an outrageous! How do they get away with it?

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A1 Organic Sheep, Wool and Fat Lamb Farm For sale 28,900 acres

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Have your say! Join others in the Agmates community for an online discussion of the sheep and wool industry by leaving your comment.