Alpaca farms across Australia have been opening their gates to the public, as the industry holds its first National Alpaca Week since the Covid pandemic.
Australian Alpaca Association president Brett Fallon says the event is designed to create awareness about an industry that has enormous growth potential.
Much of that growth potential is down to an insatiable global demand for alpaca fleece - lower micron fleece in the 14 to 18 range is sought after by high end fashion houses to be made into garments like scarves, gloves and sweaters, while other grades are used in quilts and bedding, and carpets.
"We can't keep up with the demand for the fleece, with the majority of that being exported," Mr Fallon said.
"High end wool is going to Europe and New Zealand takes a bit. A significant amount of the other wool goes to China for their use and for processing as well.
"The supply of Australian alpaca fibre is the only limitation. Once we get to a more sustainable level of supply, prices should increase as well."
The animals are also used in Australia as livestock guardians, pets and grass grazers for lifestyle blocks.
Mr Fallon said the national herd number was hard to calculate because of the animals' use for varying purposes, but it could be around 300,000.
Rather than setting ambitious growth targets for the nation's herd, Mr Fallon said the AAA was focused on "making the most of what we've already got".
"We know there's a lot of alpacas that aren't contributing to our supply chain so we're investing in educational materials for harvesting fleece so we can get more fibre into the system and get a better return for alpaca producers."
SA farms open gates during National Alpaca Week
Seven South Australian farms have held open days and private tours during National Alpaca Week.
One of those is Yacka Ridge Alpacas owner and AAA SA region president Jolyon Porter.
Mr Porter has been an alpaca producer for 32 years near Birdwood in the Adelaide Hills, running 130 breeding Huacaya females, as well as wethers and ten stud certified males.
Fleece production is the herd's main output, with animals cutting an average of 4 kilograms of fleece in the 16-24 micron range once a year.
Prices range from $5/kg for offcuts up to $45/kg for good quality fleece.
The wethers are run with a sheep flock and sold as livestock guardians generally in the $600-$800 a head range.
"Our primary aim is to improve fleece weights. We've got animals cutting 4kg of fleece and would like to see that improve to 6-7kg over time," Mr Porter said.
"When the first animals came to Australia from Chile they would have been lucky to get 1kg of fleece so that progression in 30 years has been quite good."
Yacka Ridge collects fleece from other producers, marketing about 7 tonnes a year. Mr Porter says the group could sell far more if they had the capacity.
"We've had calls from the UK, Italy, Poland, Turkey, China, Korea, Canada, Norway," he said.
"There's worldwide demand for the fleece. It's just getting the quantity to meet the demand.
"We've had enquiries from India to buy ultrafine 14-16 micron fleece to make Pashminas. There's a market for every bit of fibre."
Yacka Ridge held an open day on the weekend, making animal and fleece sales, and Mr Porter says the national week is a good chance to share information with people interested in the fleece, or even entering the production side of the industry.
The farm will be holding another open day this Saturday.
Other SA farms opening their gates in National Alpaca Week include Alpacas Chaparral, Minlaton, Carlisle Alpacas, Dawesley, Jotars Alpacas, Forreston, Stansbury Alpacas, Inglewood, Rockleigh Alpacas, Kanmantoo, and Yaringa Alpacas at Bald Hills on the Fleurieu Peninsula.
