Every year, our sheep produce 14,000 tonnes of wool, mainly exported to China. A collective aspires to enhance the value of this French know-how in the sector. Do you know where the jumper you are wearing comes from? Of course, if you are asked the question, your first reaction will be to name a brand. Perhaps, for the most pointed ones, you will indicate where it was made. But do you know where the wool used to knit it came from? Probably not, the sheep behind your jumper (even if it is “made in France”) is less likely to come from Lacaune than from Australia or New Zealand, the two biggest producers of merino wool in the world (which is highly prized by fashion designers). “If until the beginning of the 20th century, the French flock was sought after for its wool, it was then left aside in favor of sheep sent by the English to Australia,” explains Audrey Desormeaux, chargé de mission at the National Sheep Federation (FNO). Today, in our country, we breed mainly for sheep’s milk and lamb meat”.