Ben Hansen (fifth generation member) inspecting greasy wool from farm.

Key Takeaways

Organic wool certification focuses on chemical-free farming, but doesn’t always guarantee fibre performance and quality.
Wisewool™ uses wool from NZFAP certified farms, which ensures high standards of animal welfare and farm management practices. This ensures quality of fibre, including length and strength, minimal vegetable matter, colour and crimp.
The processing of wool after shearing plays a big role in preserving wool’s natural properties.

Fact:

Wisewool’s scoured wool was independently tested by NZWTA in Australia, alongside certified scoured organic wool. Both showed identical results = nd (concentration was below the specified limit of reporting) for chemical residue.

Click below for test results.

What is organic certified wool?

Organic wool typically comes from sheep raised under organic farming standards. This usually means:

No synthetic pesticides or fertilisers are used on pasture
No mulesing (Mostly used in Australia, mulesing is the removal of strips of skin from a sheep’s rear to prevent flystrike, but it’s a painful and controversial practice.)
No genetically modified feed
Limited use of veterinary medicines

Wool is then processed in certified organic facilities that restrict the use of certain dyes, detergents and finishes.

Certification bodies like GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) govern these claims, and the label often appeals to eco-conscious consumers.

But here’s the catch: Organic certification mainly addresses the farming system, not the performance or structure of the fibre itself.

What is Wisewool™?

Wisewool™ is a fifth-generation family wool business that oversees strong wool along the whole supply chain.

They are a New Zealand strong-wool innovator working with farmers who follow the New Zealand Farm Assurance Programme (NZFAP). This is an internationally recognised standard for high animal welfare, environmental stewardship and traceability.

The wool may not be "certified organic" in a technical sense, but it follows the same principles:

No chemical residues detected after scouring (verified by NZWTA’s chemical residue testing certification)
Sheep are not mulesed and are ethically shorn
Pasture-raised under rotational grazing systems
Scoured and processed without harmful chemicals

Wisewool™ focuses on preserving wool’s natural performance attributes throughout the entire supply chain. They prioritise fibre crimp integrity, fibre strength and length, minimal vegetable matter, and bright colour.

Four Generations of Wisewool assure quality — Henry Hansen and **Andrew Hansen** - Wisewool™ quality insurance (both fourth generation)

What’s the Difference?

In an age where buzzwords like organic, natural, and sustainability dominate consumers’ desires, it’s natural to ask: Does certified organic wool guarantee the best product? And how does it compare to wool solutions like Wisewool™?

Aspect	Wisewool™ (NZFAP Certified)	Certified Organic Wool
Chemical Residue	Not Detected (nd). Denotes concentration below the specified limit of reporting (NZWTA certified)	Not Detected (nd). Denotes concentration below the specified limit of reporting (NZWTA certified).
Price	Fair and sustainable Price	Higher Price
Fibre Strength	Stronger fibre and more consistent length.	Typically more brittle with increased variation in length. Often, the fibre breaks more easily when processing.
Colour and Vegetable Matter	Brighter, whiter and less vegetable matter due to selective sourcing and handling	Often inconsistent colour and higher vegetable matter quantity, depending on the source
Traceability	Full traceability to individual farms in Gisborne, New Zealand	Often bulked from multiple farms with less precise traceability.
Natural Origin	100% natural, no synthetics or additives	100% natural, meets organic standards
Certification	NZFAP certified, matches High Wisewool™ standards with superior wool performance	Certified organic with strict rules on inputs and treatments

Does organic certification guarantee the performance of the Fibre?

No. Organic certification ensures the wool was farmed in a specific way.

Organic certification limits preventative treatments, which can increase animal stress e.g. flystrike. Such stress on the animal can transfer to the growth in the fleece, often resulting in breaks in the fibre. This can lead to the wool becoming brittle and less consistent.

In addition, sometimes lower-quality pastures, due to the inability to fertilise pasture under organic certification, lead to nutritional pressure, resulting again in fibre breaks. The intent is good, but outcomes for both sheep and fibre can fall short.

Does Wisewool™ guarantee performance?

Yes, without compromise.

Wisewool is sourced from NZFAP-certified strong wool farms, with a focus on animal health, fibre quality and full traceability.

Their growers have used the same proven sheep genetics for over 80 years. They’ve spent 130+ years educating farmers on how to keep fleeces clean, from pasture to shed. Even the path to the woolshed is kept clear of vegetable matter.

Gisborne’s lush pasture, varying terrain, and reliable rainfall produce healthy sheep and quality strong wool. The result? Brighter, stronger, and more resilient fibre with minimal vegetable matter and no chemical residue, which is independently verified (as per above).

Quality meets performance, every time.

Greasy Wool Being Grab Sampled as part of the Wisewool™ Quality Assurance Process

How Can You Trust Where Your Wool Comes From?

With organic wool, traceability sometimes ends at the farm level certification. The fibre may be bulked from multiple farms to create sizable lots, traded between entities, and blended during processing. This makes it difficult to know exactly where it came from or what it has been through.

Note: WoolWorks, New Zealand's scouring plant, is certified to process organic wool.

Wisewool takes a different approach. They oversee the entire supply chain (from fleece to finished product), maintaining full control and traceability at every stage. Each batch stays true to its source, never mixed or diluted.

Wool is core tested on arrival at our own or affiliated woolstores with regular on-farm inspections ensuring consistent quality. Processing is kept in-house or within a trusted network, not passed between businesses or third-party suppliers. No shortcuts, no compromises.

Is there a consistent supply of certified organic wool from New Zealand?

Not reliably, and that presents a real challenge. Less than 1% of New Zealand’s wool is certified organic so lots from different farms have to be combined to meet quantities.

Brands chasing an organic label often pay a significant premium, yet still face unpredictable supply and inconsistent fibre quality. When availability tightens, they may be forced to accept lower-grade fibre just to retain certification.

Wisewool takes a different approach. By controlling its supply chain from farm to finished product, it guarantees traceable, high-performance wool without compromise. 100% of Wisewools wool comes from NZFAP certified farms so this creates much bigger lots of wool ensuring consistency of fibre and making traceability easy.

A Wisewool family member personally oversees most of the supply chain, offering a hands-on guarantee.

To conclude, organic certification has its place, but it’s not the only path to ethically grown wool.

Wisewool™ works with NZFAP-certified farms, tests every bale, and uses mindful processing across the entire supply chain to deliver wool that is sustainable and consistently high-performing.

For those who care how wool performs, not just how it's grown, the story goes far beyond the organic label.

Contact us for more Wisewool™ information