Co-operative chairman Jeff Grant is also warning that should it fail, there is a chance all the country's wool exporters will be foreign-owned.
Two Chinese companies are interested in buying Allan Hubbard's 65% stake in New Zealand Wool Services International (WSI), the only other New Zealand-owned exporter.
"Wool exports will then be the only commodity which is totally foreign-owned."
Wool Partners Co-operative (WPC) has also expressed an interest in buying the WSI stake, but receivers for Mr and Mrs Hubbard are still several months away from deciding on a buyer.
WPC needs a committed supply of 55 million kilos of strong wool by Wednesday, and the expectation it will get another 10 million kilos committed within a year, for it to proceed. Mr Grant conceded it was short 15 million to 20 million kilos.
Growers are being asked to buy one $1 share for every kilo of wool committed.
But sources say the more than $35 million of capital raised so far is the most ever for the wool industry, and while sufficient to launch the company, a minimum of 55 million kilos is needed to provide processing economies of scale.
Mr Grant said despite a "smear campaign" by opponents of the venture led by the New Zealand Council of Wool Exporters, just 18 growers had withdrawn their share applications, mostly for personal reasons.
Council president John Dawson said he was merely asking questions about detail in the prospectus. He said the wool industry had a bright future even if WPC failed.
"The industry is not in danger of falling over and does not need rescuing by WPC."
Mr Grant conceded getting the extra 15 to 20 million kilos would be tough, but he said the largest volume of applications tended to flood in on the last few days.
"Without a doubt, it will require a bloody good wind."
Mr Grant said should WPC fail to get support, there was no plan B.
If it failed, he said, Wool Partners International (WPI), which was to be the vehicle for WPC, would fold back in to PGG Wrightson. Then Wool Grower Holdings, the holder of farmer shares in WPI, would most likely be placed in voluntary liquidation, as it would not have the funds to buy foundation assets for WPC as planned.
That included exporter Bloch and Behrens and service entity Wools of New Zealand.
PGG Wrightson was the subject of a partial takeover by cornerstone shareholder Agria, and Mr Grant said while he had not held discussions with Agria, the partial takeover created uncertainty as public utterances about its plans had not mentioned wool.
The application period for shares closes on February 16.