Farm to Floor /
Natural, renewable and luxurious, wool is nature’s finest fibre. Utilising the latest technology with Mother Nature’s best, flooring companies like Godfrey Hirst are backing the New Zealand economy. Mitre 10 MEGA Ashburton explains.
Natural, renewable and luxurious, the benefits of wool carpet
THE PHILOSOPHY OF FARM to floor is very akin to the ethos of paddock to plate, with more conscious consumers looking for greener options and wanting to know where their carpet is coming from, what type of wool is used and where it is processed. Flooring suppliers are endeavouring to manufacture as sustainably as possible, by producing their carpets to cut length and minimising waste to landfill.
The benefits of wool fibre are significant – it is biodegradable, naturally stain-resistant, easy to maintain, flame-retardant, breathable, hypoallergenic, and has thermal insulation.
In terms of backing our local economy and contributing to the rebuild post-COVID-19, wool is a renewable sustainable product grown fully in New Zealand. The carbon footprint is light given the access to top-quality local product. Every year, our flooring suppliers such as Godfrey Hirst scour thousands of tonnes of New Zealand wool, helping to support the agriculture industry and securing their position as one of the largest wool carpet manufacturers in the world.
In terms of a booming construction and renovation industry, it’s good to know that even despite long transport delays and volatile international markets, carpet production in New Zealand can still be in full production mode, and using mainly New Zealandgrown resources. Even though Covid lockdown shut production down for a while, it is encouraging to learn that post-lockdown, suppliers had never been busier trying to meet demand for top-quality floor coverings.
Despite very strong growth in hard flooring, such as hybrid and laminate floor, consumers wanting a soft natural option for bedrooms and media rooms would be hard-pressed to look past wool for sustainability and environmental reasons. There is also something lovely about walking or lying on a proudly New Zealand-made natural wool carpet and being instantly connected to the farm, animals, land, and environment we call home.