NZ heading for lowest wool clip in 6 years as farmers favour meat breeds, sheep flock declines

NZ heading for lowest wool clip in 6 years as farmers favour meat breeds, sheep flock declines
By Tina Morrison May 27 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand, the world's largest exporter of crossbred wool, is heading for its smallest annual wool clip in six years, reflecting the lowest sheep flock in more than 70 years, dry conditions and an increased focus on meat producing breeds of sheep. New Zealand will probably produce 138,400 tonnes of greasy wool, or 833,700 wool bales, in the annual season that runs through June, down 5.4 percent on the year earlier, according to farmer-owned industry organisation Beef + Lamb New Zealand. That woul...