WA’s non-mulesed sheep proportions are the lowest in the country but growing premiums could be gamechanging

Australian farmers have not been in a rush to transition away from mulesing, especially in WA, but with growing premiums for non-mulesed wool this could be set to change.

Recent AWEX data indicated the proportion of non-mulesed merino wool had increased by a mere 3 per cent during the past three years.

WA had the lowest proportion of non-mulesed sheep in the country at 24 per cent for crossbred and 6 per cent for merino between June, 2024 and May, 2025.

WA was followed by South Australia, with 30 per cent and 11 per cent respectively.

Comparatively, Queensland and Tasmania lead with their stats almost doubling that of NSW and Victoria — which represent the majority of wool sales across the country.

QLD had the highest percentage of non-mulesed crossbred sheep at 75 per cent and second highest merino at 43 per cent, while Tasmania had 60 per cent crossbred and the highest percentage of non-mulesed merino at 52 per cent.

Westcoast Wool and Livestock broker Justin Haydock said the premiums available for non-mulesed sheep could encourage farmers to shift to more “plain-bodied sheep” in the next five to 10 years.

“With the premiums available, I think the numbers will only grow,” he said.

In the last auction for the 2024-25 financial year, non-mulesed RWS-certified clips maintained premiums of more than 150¢/kg, especially in 19 to 20.5 microns.

Mr Haydock said the growing premium for non-mulesed wool, specifically RWS wool — an integrity qualification scheme adopted by the company — was driven by demand from European and US manufacturers.

“Many brands have said they will only buy RWS wool by 2026 and these brands sit on the board of the Textile Exchange — this is leading to the growing premium for RWS wool,” he said.

Global brands — including Australian brands and retailers such as Gorman, Country Road, Myer, Target, and H&M — are reportedly no longer accepting wool from lambs that have been mulesed, while over 330 brands worldwide have committed to end mulesing by 2030.

Mr Haydock said while there is a growing premium for RWS wool, mulesed wool still held value.

“China, India, Vietnam and these sorts of countries consume a lot of wool that is mulesed,” he said.

According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics, China is the largest importer of Australian wool.

In fact, more than 85 per cent of WA wool ended up in Chinese processing facilities in the 2023-24 financial year, a 1.2 per cent increase on year to date.

China is followed by India with 5 per cent, Italy with 2.8 per cent and Czechia with 2.7 per cent.

While markets are accessible for both mulesed and non-mulesed wool, industry continues to look for ways to reduce mulesing.

An Australian Wool Innovation spokesperson said industry was committed to reducing reliance on mulesing but it would depend on the development and adoption of effective alternatives to ensure sheep welfare.

“The industry is investing in research for alternatives to reduce the incidence of flystrike, promoting the use of anaesthetics and analgesics and providing the tools for woolgrowers to work towards reducing their reliance on mulesing,” they said.

Through AWI, woolgrowers and the Federal Government have invested $48.5M million in Flystrike Research, Development and Extension, designed to help woolgrowers looking to manage their flocks without mulesing and optimises animal welfare, productivity and profitability on their farms.