The company, which trades as WoolWorks, handles about 80%, or more than 100 million kg, of the New Zealand wool clip and has scours in Hawke’s Bay and South Canterbury.
Jointly owned by David Ferrier and Tanarra Capital Partners, it is chaired by Silver Fern Farms Co-operative director Rob Hewett who was excluded from deliberations and the decision to invest, a statement said.
The price has not yet been revealed for the transaction which relates to Silver Fern Farms Co-operative, which owns 50% of Silver Fern Farms Ltd with Bright Meat Group. Silver Fern Farms Ltd is not a party to it.
Co-operative chairwoman Anna Nelson said the investment was part of the co-operative’s strategy to develop new revenue streams for farmers.
"At a time where our sheep farmers in particular are facing some challenges, this investment is a vote of the co-operative’s confidence in the future of the industry," she says.
"Although there have been some difficult trading conditions in the last few seasons, the performance and returns from Silver Fern Farms Ltd over a number of years have given the co-operative the ability to invest in new initiatives to increase on-farm returns.
"We know there's the potential to capture more value for high-quality wool, and we’re excited by the opportunity our investment in WoolWorks gives us to help unlock this," she said.
Woolworks president Nigel Hales said a newly established division at Woolworks would focus on emerging opportunities for differentiated wool supply.
"We are seeing increasing opportunities for a differentiated line of wool supply from farm through to manufacturers who are looking for additional environmental credentials for their wool, such as low carbon. They are also looking for this to be underpinned by a traceable supply chain," he said.
"Global regulators and commercial building specifiers are looking seriously towards natural products as sustainable alternatives to what is currently available, and we are seeing this shift happening quickly in some markets,’’ he said.
ANZ’s October Agri-Focus report said wool prices had improved a little recently as offer volumes were relatively small at present. Demand for wool was picking up a little as buyers competed for the smaller volume on offer.
Fine wool prices had eased slightly, driven down by prices easing in Australia. Reports from the annual Nanjing Wool Market Conference in late September indicated demand for fine wool was soft but demand for other grades, such as coarse wool, was better.
