CASHMERE IS AN unlikely candidate for controversy. It conjures up images of cosy, expensive scarves made from the belly hair of goats roaming across the steppes of Mongolia, using techniques and skills honed over the centuries. It’s a luxe treat that has grown more accessible in recent years; see Naadam’s US$75 sweater, for instance, or the rows of candy-coloured pullovers in mass-market stores. Yet, though the price of a cashmere sweater might have dipped, the costs are higher than ever. Much like one of the bitter winters, known as dzuds, that menace Mongolia, this age-old industry faces a perfect storm of challenges: rising demand, surging temperatures and plunging prices for raw materials, which should put cashmere in any ethical shopper’s crosshairs.
First, demand. Cashmere forms almost seven per cent of the US$71.2 billion global luxury industry alone, per Bain & Co – more a problem than an opportunity when each goat’s yield is a meagre 113g of finished fibre. Farmers have boosted their flocks to better cater to the new market; some 29 million goats graze the steppes today, almost five times the number 30 years ago. Such an increase in livestock would likely stress even plush pastures thanks to overgrazing, but the land in Mongolia is under its own duress. Ninety per cent of the country is arid and so especially vulnerable to desertification. Mongolia is a hotspot for climate change, where temperatures have risen by an average of 2.24°C between 1940 and 2015, compared with an average global rise of about 1.8 degrees. Of course, that warming threatens the very ecosystem on which the goats depend—the second major problem.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
BREAKING DOWN WALLS
Georgina Atkinson, managing partner of Origin Private Office, on the evolving landscape of high-end real estate.
Aged Gracefully
The Benromach 50 Years Old by Gordon & MacPhail is a delicious single malt, touched by love, passion and the human hand.
This Month's Feed
Only the best dining and drinking spots in Singapore.
Small-scale Thinking
Architect Todd Saunders wants to change the way we approach hospitality design from the ground up.
Todd Snyder Is Exactly Where He Wants To Be
\"Our whole goal is to present product in a way that guys get it and understand it, versus 'Here's some crazy aspirational brand-you go figure it out on your own'.\"
Depp Dive Into Sauvage
Johnny Depp on music, scents and the mystique of creativity.
Time For Poetry
Pascal Raffy on his love affair with the 202-year-old house of Bovet.
One of a Kind
The incomparable Lange 1 turns 30 this year and A. Lange & Söhne marks the occasion with its trademark understatement.
P For Personality
Enhance your swing, and inject your personal style while you're at it, with TaylorMade's new P-770 and P-7CB irons.
The Short-hop-adventure-craft Category Takes Off
Inside the flight deck of Pivotal's Blackfly eVTOL, an ultra-smart ultra-light with eight propellers, electric propulsion and no pilot's licence required.