The fleece

          Alpacas produce a wonderful soft, strong and dense fleece that is highly sought after by the high-priced end of the fashion and designer markets and provides a good return.   

Ø      It is ‘hair’ rather than wool, is made of hollow fibres and has wonderful insulating qualities

Ø      It is three times as strong as sheep’s wool and does not pill.

Ø      Thus it can be made into materials that are fine and delicate and yet strong and hardwearing.

Ø      It produces a soft woollen/silky fabric similar to cashmere though generally lighter, softer and stronger.

Ø      The lightness, softness and general quality of the fabrics that are produced can provide both warmth in winter and cool wear for summer.

Ø      A wide range of colourful products can be made from the 22-40 different natural colours even without the use of dyes. 

Ø      The white fleece can be dyed to a variety of colours. 

Alpaca fibre has been a significant part of the South American economy for many years.  It is well known and traded successfully in the international market place.  The yarn, cloth and finished products command high prices.

  Ø      Small amounts of fleece can be sold ‘at the gate’ or by mail to individual spinners as part of a cottage industry. 

Ø      Larger amounts can be sent to the British Alpaca Fibre Co-operative which collects and processes the fibre annually. 

Ø      The British Alpaca Fine Fibre Company is developing products ranging from furnishing throws and cushions to wearing apparel.  

Technical details

            Judged by its cellular composition alpaca fibre is more akin to hair than to wool.  Each fibre has a medullated core consisting of air-filled cells the sequence of which can be continuous or interrupted.  This gives the fibres their strength and excellent insulating characteristics.  Its strength is second only to that of silk and each fibre has significantly fewer scales than sheep wool fibres.  This is thought to be part of the reason why alpaca fibre leads to so few allergic reactions, compared to sheep’s wool            Guard hair (secondary coat) is the name given to the coarse hairs that can add to the ‘itch’ of the fleece.  This hair is generally found only on the chest and legs and not in the main body of the fleece, thus contributing to the overall softness of the fleece and its products.  Fibre diameter is generally between 20 and 35 microns,  20-22 microns is considered to be excellent.

Quantity

            Annual shearing produces between 2.5 to 5 Kg of fleece from adults (whole and gelded males as well as females).  Cria produced the finest fleeces in their first year but only in small quantities.   The quantity and quality of fleece should see steady improvements as the result of a carefully controlled breeding programme.

Colours