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While breeders report fiber can sell for US$2 to $4 per ounce, the world wholesale price for processed, spun alpaca "tops" is only between about $10 to $24/kg (according to quality), i.e. about $0.28 to $0.68 per oz. [19] Finer fleeces, ones with a smaller diameter, are preferred, and thus are more expensive.
The number of wraps will act as a gauge to assess the thickness of unmarked yarn; for example 12 wraps per inch is 12 WPI, and is used to calculate how much yarn is required for various articles, [3] so that 12 is equivalent to 8 ply (worsted weight, medium weight) yarn.
A wool with an average fiber length of 2–4 cm is obtained every other year. The weight of shorn wool hairs per animal is about 250 g every two years [9] to 450 g, [1] after removal of unwanted guard hairs from the down hair. [1] Before processing, the down hair is separated from the guard hair by sorting.
The length of the head and body ranges from 1.45 to 1.60 m (about 5 ft); shoulder height is from 75 to 85 cm (around 3 ft); its weight is from 35 to 65 kg (under 150 lb). It falls prey to the cougar and culpeo .
Given the linear density and weight the yarn length can be calculated; for example: l/m = 1693 × l m /Nec × m/kg, where l/m is the yarn length in metres, l m /Nec is the English cotton count and m/kg is the yarn weight in kilograms. The following length units are defined. Bundle: usually 10 lb (4.5 kg)
Alpacas are typically sheared once per year in the spring. Each shearing produces approximately 2.3 to 4.5 kilograms (5 to 10 pounds) of fiber per alpaca. An adult alpaca might produce 1.4 to 2.6 kilograms (50 to 90 ounces) of first-quality fiber as well as 1.4 to 2.8 kilograms (50 to 100 ounces) of second- and third-quality fiber.
Bales should weigh between 110 kg (243 lb) and 204 kg (450 lb), unless the wool is under 18.6 microns, in which case they may be a minimum gross weight of 90 kg (198 lb). Bales that weigh less than 110 kg (243 lb) are known as a butt and those over 204 kg (450 lb) will not be sold at auction without repacking at the vendor's expense.
A 14 million kg backlog is waiting to be cleared by the board, while the average price per kg has virtually halved from the previous year’s 60p to 32p. Further reasons for current decline in wool prices are Brexit uncertainty and the US-China trade war. [11] The situation had dramatic effects for sheep farmers across the UK.