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Australia is famous for its vast pastures and high-quality wool, but surprisingly, this wool-producing country produces almost no cashmere. What is the reason behind this? Let's take a deeper look at this interesting topic.
What is Cashmere?
Cashmere refers to the fine and soft fibers obtained from goats, mainly from cashmere goats in China, Mongolia, Iran and other places. Cashmere fibers are extremely fine, with a diameter usually between 14-19 microns, much finer than ordinary wool. This precious fiber is highly valued for its lightness, softness and excellent thermal insulation properties.
Compared to wool, the production of cashmere is much lower. A cashmere goat can only produce about 150-200 grams of cashmere per year, while a sheep can produce 4-5 kilograms of wool per year. This huge difference in production also makes the price of cashmere much higher than ordinary wool.
Is Australia's natural environment suitable for cashmere production?
1. Climate factors: Most of Australia has a tropical and subtropical climate with relatively warm winters. This climate is not suitable for the growth of cashmere goats, because cashmere is a special protective layer that goats have evolved to resist the cold.
2. Topographic factors: Most of Australia is flat and lacks mountainous environments suitable for cashmere goats to survive. Cashmere goats usually live in mountainous areas with high altitudes, where the temperature difference between day and night is large, which is conducive to the growth of cashmere.
3. Vegetation factors: Australia's vegetation is mainly shrubs and grasslands, lacking the mountain shrubs and herbaceous plants that cashmere goats prefer. This dietary difference will also affect the quality and yield of cashmere.
Australia's livestock industry structure
Australia's animal husbandry is mainly based on sheep farming, which is closely related to its historical development. Since the British colonists introduced Merino sheep in the late 18th century, Australia has gradually developed into one of the world's largest wool producers.
1. Industry scale: Australia currently has about 70 million sheep, mainly distributed in the southeastern states of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. In contrast, the number of goats is much smaller and is mainly used for meat production.
2. Economic benefits: Due to the high yield and stable market demand of Merino wool, the Australian livestock industry prefers to invest in sheep farming. Cashmere has a lower yield and requires more sophisticated feeding and management, which makes it not economically advantageous.
3. Technology accumulation: After more than 200 years of development, Australia has accumulated rich experience and technology in sheep breeding, farming and wool processing. These advantages have enabled Australia to occupy an important position in the wool industry.
Characteristics of Australia's textile industry
1. Industry positioning: Australia's textile industry mainly focuses on the production of wool products, including wool fabrics, blankets, carpets, etc. This specialized industry positioning enables Australia to occupy an important position in the international wool market.
2. Technological innovation: Australia has continuously innovated in wool processing technology and developed many high-performance wool products. For example, the diameter of superfine Merino wool can reach less than 16.5 microns, which is close to the fineness of cashmere.
3. Brand building: Australia has established a comprehensive wool quality certification system, such as the "Woolmark" logo, which helps to enhance the international reputation and market competitiveness of Australian wool.
Distribution of cashmere industry around the world
1. Main production areas: Currently, more than 90% of cashmere in the world is produced in China and Mongolia. The climate, topography and vegetation conditions in these areas are very suitable for the growth of cashmere goats.
2. Production characteristics: Cashmere production requires a lot of manual operations, including combing, sorting, etc. These processes require a lot of labor, and Australia's high labor costs make cashmere production not economically advantageous.
3. Market structure: The cashmere industry has formed a relatively stable global supply chain. As a major wool producer, Australia prefers to focus on its own areas of strength rather than entering the mature cashmere market.
In summary, the fact that Australia does not produce cashmere is determined by a variety of factors. The limitations of natural conditions, the inertia of industrial structure, and considerations of economic benefits have led Australia to choose to focus on the development path of the wool industry. Although it does not produce cashmere, Australia's leading position in the wool industry remains unshakable.
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