About me
About BIOWOL:
BIOWOL is the new brand of strick-mir-was.at, the Austrian specialist for organic wool and plant-based (vegan) wool.
Animal welfare, regionalism, social commitment, ecological products, and sustainability are at the forefront. We are convinced that an ecological and sustainable coexistence with our environment and all its creatures is possible, which ultimately benefits ourselves. We are committed to this and want to make a contribution to it with the careful selection of our products.
Domestic sheep's wool is hardly used in Austria nowadays. This wonderful natural material with its many good properties is hardly used and mostly disposed of or used as insulation material. At the same time, cheap wool is imported from abroad, which has been obtained with more than questionable practices (e.g. mulesing, large-scale spraying with pesticides, etc.). We want to counteract this situation and give our sheep's wool the value that we believe it deserves.
We process exclusively Austrian sheep's wool from healthy living sheep from controlled organic animal husbandry (kbT) and produce products that are in harmony with ecology and sustainability. We prefer to work with local companies and attach great importance to animal and environmental protection from the acquisition, processing to the packaging of our products. Our products are packaged in an environmentally conscious way, some of which are also available without packaging, with which we would like to support the ZERO-WASTE movement. In addition, we source genuine green electricity from Austria from MeinAlpenStrom.
ANIMAL WELFARE
Why Austrian organic wool?
When one thinks of wool, one usually thinks of a natural good product. One thinks of fluffy sheep standing and grazing on the pasture. From time to time, when their fur becomes too thick, they are sheared and then happily run back to the pasture. Unfortunately, this is not the case in most cases.
The mass...
The world's largest wool producer is Australia, followed by China and New Zealand. The sheep live there in mass animal husbandry and are sheared accordingly in masses. Since the shearers are usually paid per sheep and not per hour, no consideration is given to the sheep. As a result, the animals are inflicted with large wounds during shearing, which are sewn up again without anesthesia or even entire body parts are cut off.
Mulesing...
Another major animal welfare-related point of criticism is the so-called "mulesing". Due to the special breeding of Merino sheep for more wool, they have more skin folds, in which special flies often settle and lay their eggs. The hatched larvae eat the sheep there, which causes great pain. In order to counteract this, the lambs have a large piece of meat cut off around their tail without anesthesia. Many lambs die as a result of this incredibly painful procedure, yet it is still being carried out, as it is profitable for sheep farmers.
The transport...
If the sheep no longer provide enough wool, they are transported for weeks on ships to Turkey and the Middle East. This live transport is so stressful for the animals that most of them do not survive it.
Ecologically speaking...
The huge sheep herds in mass animal husbandry are a great burden on the climate and the environment. In addition, whole herds are sprayed with insecticides to kill the insects that settle in large numbers due to the housing conditions. The stored wool is also sprayed with moth repellents.
Therefore...
For animal welfare, ethical reasons for climate and environment, and for our own health, we only offer products made from 100% Austrian organic wool from healthy living sheep from controlled organic animal husbandry (kbT). When purchasing wool, make sure it is mulesing-free and preferably also ecologically processed. By doing so, you are making an important contribution to animal and environmental protection.
About me:
Hemma C. Brandstetter
Founder & Owner
I was born on March 27th, 1979 in Vienna. After several years of studying Zoology, I completed a management training and worked for a few years in an animal welfare organization. It was only later, during a personal reorientation, that I discovered my passion for wool and handicrafts. I taught myself everything and have never stopped since. I am married, a mother of two daughters, and currently live with my family and animals from animal welfare in Lower Austria.
I am convinced that an ecological and sustainable coexistence with our environment and all its living beings is possible, which ultimately benefits ourselves. I have been working towards this for many years and want to contribute to it by carefully selecting my products. I believe that the sustainable use of the resources provided by nature and responsible handling of them is the only way to live in good coexistence with our environment in the long term. Therefore, in my view, it is necessary to consciously advocate for this and take responsibility. This applies to us as consumers as well as to companies that produce or distribute products.
Through the consistent implementation of our high values in all our natural products, from the extraction of raw materials to processing and packaging, we are uncompromisingly implementing this idea with BIOWOL.