SIFO REPORT NO 8-19 CONSUMPTION RESEARCH NORWAY KRUS final report: Enhancing local value chains in Norway Ingun Grimstad Klepp, Tone Skårdal Tobiasson, Vilde Haugrønning, Gunnar Vittersø, Lise Grøva, Torhild Kvingedal, Ingvild Espelien and Elin Kubberød Report no. 8 - 2019 Title Antall sider Dato KRUS final report: Enhancing 145 09.10.2019 local value chains in Norway Tittel ISBN ISSN KRUS sluttrapport: Grønn 978-82-7063-494-1 vekst i hvitt gull gjennom lokalt forankrede verdikjeder Authors Prosjektnummer Faglig ansvarlig sign. Ingun Grimstad Klepp, Tone 416013 Skårdal Tobiasson, Vilde Haugrønning, Gunnar Vittersø Lise Grøva, Torhild Kvingedal Ingvild Espelien og Elin Kubberød Client Norges Forskningsråd Sammendrag Fra prosjektet startet i 2015 og frem til slutten i 2019 har KRUS hatt to mål: å forbedre markedet for og verdien av norsk ull og kartlegge mulighetene for lokal produksjon som et skritt mot bærekraft i klesindustrien. KRUS har sett på hvordan vi kan gjenopprette en forståelse av sammenhengen mellom råvaren og det ferdige produktet innen industrien og blant forbrukerne. Det er viktig å forstå denne sammenhengen, både for å sikre kvalitetsprodukter og for å nå markedspotensialet for norsk ull. Å gjenopprette forståelsen av "hvor klær kommer fra" er også kjernen i utfordringene innen tekstil. Forbruk og produksjon av klær vil møte store utfordringer og endringer de neste 10 årene. I dag er industrien preget av lite regulering, kontroll og kunnskap, men store volumer, miljøpåvirkning, og belastninger på dyr og mennesker. KRUS har bidratt i debatten om bærekraft og klær ved å fokusere på lokale verdikjeder og lokalt produserte klær, verdi, levetid, kvalitet og hjemmeproduksjon. Norsk ull og de spesifikke egenskapene til våre saueraser har spilt en vesentlig rolle for norsk tekstiltradisjon og kleskultur. Større bevissthet og stolthet over egne tradisjoner og mulighetene i våre råvarer har vært vesentlig for prosjektet. Norsk ull er ikke markedsført med opprinnelsesmerke. Private aktører har utviklet egne merker og markedsføringsstrategier for å få frem opprinnelsen. Da KRUS startet var det få produkter på markedet som inneholdt norsk ull utover strikkegarn og noen ferdige strikkegensere. Vi har opplevd et skifte, med mange nye produkter på markedet fra nye og små, og fra etablerte norske tekstilbedrifter. Ikke minst har utviklingen for de eldre sauerasene vært gledelig. Dette er den ulla der utfordringene har vært størst, og mest har godt til spille. Et marked med mer variasjon åpner muligheter for produkter som tar vare på ulike egenskaper ved råvarene slik som naturlig pigmentert ull. Det er fortsatt mye ugjort både for norsk ull generelt og for de eldste rasene, men kunnskapen og interessen rundt mulighetene er raskt voksende. Ved avslutningen av KRUS er vi glade for å ha kunnet bidra til en positiv utvikling for norsk ull. Summary From its initiation in 2015 to the end in 2019, KRUS had two goals: to improve the market for and the value of Norwegian wool, and survey the opportunities for local production in a move towards a goal of sustainability in the fashion sector. On a larger scale, KRUS has looked at how we can re-establish an understanding of the connection between the raw material and the finished product within the textile industry and among consumers. It is critical to understand this connection, both to ensure quality products and to reach the market potential for Norwegian wool. To restore the understanding of “where clothes come from” is also at the heart of challenges currently facing the textile industry. The consumption and production of textiles faces major challenges and changes in the future. Today the industry is characterized by low control and little knowledge, while growth in quantity, environmental impact, as well as stress on animals and humans is high. KRUS has contributed to the debate on sustainable clothing by focusing on local value- chains and locally produced apparel. The focus on Norwegian wool and the specific qualities of the different breeds has played an essential role for Norwegian textile tradition and dress culture, and a better understanding of this has been essential to the project. An important challenge for Norwegian wool is that it has not been marketed with any kind of label of origin. Private actors have thus entered the field and developed their own private labels for Norwegian wool. In addition, there are few products on the market containing Norwegian wool beyond hand-knitting yarn, which means that availability has been limited. Throughout the project, we have seen a shift, especially for older sheep breeds, which have posed a special challenge. Their wool is central in keeping Norwegian handicrafts alive, but the quality on some of the wool types has been declining. For others, the challenge is that much of the wool is not taken care of, and constitutes a waste problem. Through breeding-projects, work collaboration, looking closely at labelling systems and business models, KRUS has addressed these challenges. Stikkord Ull, norsk ull, verdikjede, ullkvalitet, opprinnelsesmerking, næringsutvikling, bærekraftige klær, lokale klær, strikkegarn, Keywords Wool, Norwegian wool, value chain, labels of origin, industrial development, sustainability and clothing, local clothes, knitting yarn 2 SIFO REPORT NO 8-19 Preface KRUS, which means “crimp”, is the project-name, as Norwegian wool is known for its exceptional crimp (“bounce”), luster and durability. The project was funded by The Norwegian Research Council through the Bionær program with Ingun Grimstad Klepp (SIFO, Oslomet) as project leader. The sub-heading for the project is: Enhancing local value chains in Norway, or Green growth in white gold through locally based value chains. Being a part of this project has been an educational process, and with this report we hope that our experiences and results in the project can be of use and inspiration to others. Our goal is to make the project results and publications more easily accessible to everyone. KRUS has a Facebook group as one of its faces outward. Now after completion of the project, the group still has 746 members. We feel a responsibility to continue the commitment that lies there, and will seek to continue the group even after the end of the project. We encourage all members to contribute to this by continuing to share wool news in the group. We would like to thank NFR for granting the project, Norilia and Fatland for financial support, and to all participating actors including sheep farmers, actors in the wool industry, companies, organisations, researchers and students, who have shown great engagement in the project and supported with time and money, discussion and resistance, as they cheered and shared their knowledge with us. Oslo, September 2019 Forbruksforskningsinstituttet SIFO OsloMet – Storbyuniversitetet SIFO REPORT NO 8-19 3 Contents Preface ......................................................................................................................... 3 Contents ....................................................................................................................... 4 List of terms .................................................................................................................. 6 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 10 Going back to the beginning of KRUS ...................................................................... 12 Project proposal .................................................................................................... 13 How to read and use the report ................................................................................ 17 1. Reflections – crimp enough yet? ...................................................................... 18 1.1 Wool production ............................................................................................ 18 Breeding for wool quality ....................................................................................... 19 Processing Old Norse wool ................................................................................... 19 Increasing presence on the Norwegian market ..................................................... 19 Small scale business development ....................................................................... 20 1.2 Consumption: awareness and knowledge ..................................................... 21 Labelling and marketing ........................................................................................ 21 1.3 Discussing clothing and sustainability ........................................................... 23 From “best fibre” to “best utilization of resources” ................................................. 24 Labelling more than fibre ...................................................................................... 25 Labels of origin ..................................................................................................... 25 Local as a solution ................................................................................................ 26 More knowledge on lifespans ............................................................................... 26 Land, animals and climate .................................................................................... 26 1.4 Disseminating a new discourse ..................................................................... 27 When something