A Preliminary Characterization of Wools from Italian Native Sheep Breeds: Opportunities for New Productions and the Development of Rural Areas

Italian sheep breeds, either local or native, produce about 14,000 tons of greasy wool per year included in the range of moderate to poor quality wools. In order to exploit neglected local textile resources, this study focused on a preliminary descriptive analysis of wools from some Italian native sheep breeds by measuring diameter and length of wool fibers. Variability emerging from data was described using multivariate techniques. A graphic description of different wools was provided by applying cluster analysis in order to distinguish wool characters by sheep breeds and clearly identify wool groups according to fiber variables.