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A research study by the CSIR Fibres and Textiles group of CSIR Materials Science and Manufacturing has found that the coat of the humble goat has the potential to create and contribute to a viable cashmere industry in South Africa. Cashmere has earned its worldwide popularity in luxury garments owing to its fineness, softness and warmth.
Local goat breeds
Collaboration
Local goat breeds
South Africa has an indigenous goat population of some 6 million. These are mainly kept for their meat, milk and skin products, as well as for controlling bush encroachment. There is a potential for further value-addition by utilising the fine, soft undercoat (cashmere) present in some of the breeds to produce luxury garments.
Many goat breeds possess two distinct coats, a fine undercoat (down) and coarse guard hair on top. The South African Boer goat, the Savannah and other indigenous breeds are good examples of this. The Angora goat and most sheep, on the other hand, do not possess these two coats.
The soft undercoat remaining after removal of the coarse guard hair is often referred to as cashmere or cashmere-type fibres, possessing the inherent ability to respond to changing day length and climatic conditions by means of active fibre growth and shedding or moulting periods. The seasonal growth pattern of the down fibre causes the down to grow actively from December to June, thereby protecting the goat from the cold in winter before shedding the fibre in early spring.
The average fibre diameter of cashmere is between 14 to 18,5 micron while that of human hair is approximately 60 micron. Cashmere has a dull wavy appearance and is not as lustrous as mohair or as evenly crimped as wool. The colour varies from white to black and the price is mainly determined by fibre diameter, with down yield, fibre length and colour also being taken into account. The lighter the colour (white) and the finer the fibre (16 micron and finer) with a minimum length of 40 mm, the higher the price.
Some of the cashmere fibres collected were processed successfully into knitted garments, either in 100% form or in blends thereof with lambs’ wool. Indigenous goat resources possess the ability to produce cashmere and provided that the down fibre length and yield can be improved by introducing cross-breeding programmes using high-yielding cashmere goats, a viable cashmere industry is possible. The latter will be done by the Eastern Cape Department of Agriculture and the CSIR will undertake further research in processing techniques.
Collaboration
The CSIR has since 1996 been involved in a national research initiative on developing a viable cashmere industry for South Africa based on indigenous goat breeds, such as the Boer Goat. At first partners in the project were Grootfontein, Döhne Agricultural Department Institute (ADI) a Cashmere Working Group and the CSIR. Currently ADI and the CSIR are involved. .
The short-term goal of the initiative was to determine the cashmere-producing potential of single high-productive animals’ country-wide and to research fibre-testing techniques.
Publications
Primary Contact
Dr Anton Botha
CSIR
afbotha@csir.co.za
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