Europe’s Forgotten Wool: History, Waste and the Future of a Sustainable Fibre

Publication date

20/11/2025

Europe’s Forgotten White Gold: the Paradox of the Wool We Throw Away

In 2022, global fibre production reached 116 million tons, almost double compared to 2000 and, according to statistics, is growing toward a possible 147 million by 2030. Within this production, plant-based fibres such as cotton account for 25%, man-made cellulosic fibres (MMCF: including viscose, lyocell, modal and acetate) for 6%, synthetic fibres represent more than 67%, while wool stops at about 1%. These figures are surprising if we consider that for millennia, wool production went hand in hand with livestock farming, which provided food, clothing and insulation. Wool production accompanied the economic development and cultural richness of the West since Celtic times, generating know-how, wealth and a cultural identity that later spread throughout the world.

Even today, Europe produces around 200,000 tons of raw wool. Paradoxically, much of this wool is burned, buried or shipped to Asia, particularly to China and India, where the costs of transforming it into semi-finished or finished products are lower, only to return to Europe in various forms, completing a cycle that is far from virtuous in terms of environmental, economic and cultural impact. According to data from the European Wool Exchange (2023), the average price of European wool has fallen below €0.30/kg, a value far too low to make local processing sustainable. In some cases, it is even more convenient for farmers to pay to dispose of it. According to various statistical sources, Europe currently imports between 100,000 and 200,000 tons of woollen products per year, including raw wool, wool yarn and finished textiles. The wool mainly comes from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, while the European countries that import the most, depending on the category, are Italy, Germany, France and the Czech Republic. As a result, wool has not only fallen out of common use, but the little that remains is no longer processed in Europe. Rather, alternative fibres third-country production are favoured, with consequent impacts on the environment. This problem concerns us all and should encourage us to reflect on a more sustainable consumption of textile materials.

But how did we arrive at fast fashion?

The Celts traded wool, and the Romans produced it on a large scale, organising textile facilities throughout the provinces of their empire. In the Middle Ages, social classes, trade routes and entire cities developed around wool. As a backbone of the European economy, the fabric contributed to the rise of Flanders, the Kingdom of England, as well as Castile and Tuscany. In Florence, the wool guild employed about one-third of the population, while in the 12th–13th centuries, the export of English cloth was so central that King Richard the Lionheart was “ransomed in wool” after being imprisoned by Emperor Henry VI in Vienna. Wool merchants were among the first modern entrepreneurs, and the quality of fabrics became a matter of national pride. Between the 15th and 18th centuries, wool was at the centre of the first textile globalisation. The discovery of the Americas and new trade routes introduced competing fibres such as cotton and silk, but also new market opportunities. Colonisation led to the export of sheep to Australia and South Africa, laying the foundation for an extremely profitable global-scale production that would later progressively supplant European production.

From shepherds to factories, the evolution of wool production passes through Grenger and Van Gogh.

With the Industrial Revolution, mechanical looms and steam-powered spinning transformed the artisanal nature of the sector: production increased, and control shifted from wool craftsmen to factories. After the Second World War, European countries still managed most of the world’s wool production, but from the 1970s onwards, production moved where labour was cheaper. Offshoring caused the price of raw wool to collapse and led to the disappearance of spinning mills, wool factories and artisanal skills transmitted for centuries. And then came rayon and the first synthetic fibres. In the 19th century, the first experiments with artificial fibres began, and in 1891, in France, the first commercial production of rayon was achieved. Its production grew rapidly because it cost about half as much as natural silk. Throughout the 20th century, with the rise of the petrochemical industry, synthetic fabrics gained more and more ground. The real revolution came with nylon, presented in 1939 at the New York World’s Fair. Initially used for women’s stockings, it soon became a substitute for silk, especially during the Second World War, when silk was destined for military use. From the 1960s onward, together with other synthetic fibres such as olefin, acrylic and polyester, nylon contributed to the boom of “wash and wear” fabrics, easy to wash, practical and resistant. Since then, synthetic fibres, cheaper, lighter and available all year round, established themselves as the key players in the modern textile industry and in the emerging mass-consumption society.

Globalisation and the rise of fast fashion

By outsourcing to other countries the production of the clothes we wear and buy, this “Made in China, Consumed in Europe” paradigm has cast long shadows and deep consequences. Large chains impose a fast, cheap, seasonal model that shortens garment life and drives continuous consumption. Over the past twenty years, the number of garments purchased in Europe has almost doubled, while the average lifespan of clothes has decreased by 40%.

Each European disposes of about 11 kg of textiles per year, and less than 1% is recycled into new clothing, while they purchase around 23 kg annually.

The rest is incinerated, exported or dispersed in developing countries. Natural fibres, with their longer production times and more delicate care, have been relegated to niche markets.

In Europe, each citizen consumes on average, to dress:

But how much does this consumption model really cost us?

It is proven that the environmental costs of synthetic fibres are extremely high along the entire production chain, from chemical transformation to disposal. The washing of synthetic textiles alone releases residues that account for 35% of global marine microplastics, which are then found in our bodies. Each European citizen generates, through the production and consumption of textiles, 270 kg of CO₂ emissions per year, consumes 400 m² of land and 391 kg of raw materials. And while we import low-cost synthetic fibres, we also import dependency: on non-European production models, on external economies and on non-renewable raw materials.The paradox is clear: we have replaced a sustainable resource with an artificial fibre, and today we are paying its ecological cost. Wool in fact perfectly meets the requirements of the circular economy. The tons of material we burn could be used for thermal insulation, furnishings, construction and of course clothing. The problem is that the wool supply chain requires numerous steps: shearing, sorting, washing, carding, spinning, dyeing, and finally weaving or knitting. Each requires specific skills, which Mad’in Europe described in another article thanks to the contribution of several wool artisans. These skills, very rare and precious today, survive thanks to small artisanal realities which, however, are not integrated into a structured system coordinating livestock farming, collection, transformation and marketing, and therefore remain confined to niche markets.

Can the wool supply chain be stitched back together?

In recent years, something has begun to change: the environmental crisis has brought renewed attention to natural fibres and renewable materials, and wool has returned to the centre of discussions on sustainability. This is not mere nostalgia: wool offers what synthetic fibres cannot provide, breathability, durability, biodegradability and a deep connection to place. Even the European Union has begun recognising the strategic value of local natural fibres. In this context fits the work of LAINAMAC, a French association founded in 2009 and dedicated to the promotion of local wools and artisanal know-how. The organisation supports the entire supply chain through training, business consultancy and the promotion of traceable, local production. Among its initiatives are technical workshops on felting, natural dyeing and spinning, creative residencies for designers and artisans, and professional support programmes that encourage the relocation of wool activities. Through these actions, LAINAMAC contributes concretely to the revival of a more sustainable, innovative and regionally rooted wool sector.

Another inspiring example is that of Harris Tweed in the Outer Hebrides (see MIE article), where an island community has succeeded in building an innovative business model based on entirely local production, protected and regulated by an independent certification body. There, weaving is still done by hand in the homes of the “weavers”, demonstrating how quality, traceability and territorial identity can become a real competitive advantage. This model shows that when a supply chain focuses on identity, authenticity and added value, wool can once again become an economic engine, even in peripheral contexts. In 2022, the EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles highlighted the need to reduce dependency on synthetic fibres, promote repair, recycling and the enhancement of short supply chains, emphasising the importance of traditional materials and territorial economies. The new Regulation on textile waste, implemented from 2025, will require Member States to organise selective collection and recovery systems: a turning point that opens the possibility of recognising wool not as waste, but as a resource. But in the end, the revival of the wool supply chain depends on us,passionate yet often distracted consumers who, with a simple purchasing choice, can support unsustainable models or give new strength to an ancient, virtuous material. Without full awareness of the impact of fast fashion, of the rhythms it imposes on the planet and of the value of local supply chains, we cannot truly change things.We need more communication, more awareness, more curiosity and more willingness to learn, because only by knowing can we choose. And ultimately, the future of wool is in our hands: in our everyday choices, in our ability to favour what lasts over what fades.