Production
Cashmere is produced by goats raised on the high plateaus of western and southwestern Mongolia. To survive the particularly harsh climate of this region, where temperatures can reach -40°C, goats develop a layer of fine, silky fibers under their coarse hair to protect them from the cold. These long, soft, warm threads form a natural barrier designed to preserve their body heat and insulate them from the bite of the wind. It is from this down that cashmere is made.
The cashmere goat is not a specific breed. It is the extreme climatic conditions of the region, windswept and subject to sudden temperature changes, that enable the animals to develop this fine coat under their outer hair.
Combing. When spring returns, between April and May, the goats moult naturally: breeders need only comb them by hand to harvest the gold of the steppes. However, this stage is far from easy. Handcrafted, it preserves the quality of the cashmere, unlike mechanical harvesting which, although faster, produces thicker, coarser wool. The process is long and tedious; it can take up to an hour per goat, and requires physical effort on the part of the breeders, as it calls on their strength, arms and backs.
The time of combing must be chosen with care: too early and the goats could suffer - or even die - if the cold returns. Too late, and the quality of the cashmere may be compromised by the increase in hair thickness. Combing during sandstorms, which are frequent in spring, is an impossible task: dust and gravel stick to the coat and clog the down, which must remain as pure as possible.
Goats are brushed with iron combs. There are three different sizes, depending on the areas to be combed and the quantity to be harvested. The youngest animals are always the last to be combed, as they are less resistant to climatic variations than adults.
Processing. After combing, breeders ensure that only the finest strands are harvested: they sort them by hand, known as "dehairing". Once harvested, the raw material undergoes several stages of processing. It is carefully preserved and washed to remove impurities and grease naturally present in the fibers. Next comes drying, followed by carding, to detangle and parallelize the hairs. Once spun, the fibers are resold for weaving or knitting, and finally transformed into garments. From hats and gloves to scarves and sweaters, cashmere can be used to make a wide range of garments.
Features
To qualify as cashmere, the wool must be produced from goat hair with a diameter of less than 19.5 microns. That's six times thinner than human hair! In Mongolia, the harsh climatic conditions endow goats with extremely fine down, averaging 14.5 microns. It's one of the finest cashmere wools in the world, and it's this characteristic that has contributed to its renown.
Cashmere is prized for its softness, warmth and lightness. Cashmere garments are renowned for their durability: if cared for, they can last for years. The textile is also known for its high resistance, strength and insulating properties. Highly elastic, it resists traction and offers excellent protection against cold and humidity.
Neither dyed nor bleached, cashmere fibers have few colors: they are white, with brown and gray tones, the colors of Mongolian goats' coats. White cashmere predominates, accounting for around 60% of total cashmere production.
A high price
The high price of cashmere can be explained by several factors: its rarity and the sophisticated skills involved in its collection and weaving.
Rarity. Only around 150 grams of harvestable material can be taken from each goat once a year. It therefore takes four to five goats to make one sweater.
Worldwide cashmere production represents 0.5% of wool production. For approximately 1.3 million tonnes of wool produced worldwide each year, there are only 15,000 tonnes of raw cashmere, produced by around 30 million goats. This figure drops to 6,000 tonnes of pure cashmere, once it has been washed and degreased. Compared with wool, the volume of cashmere produced is small: its supply is very limited.
More than a third of the world's cashmere comes from Mongolia, while China accounts for almost all global production, with around 10,000 tonnes a year.
Know-how. Producing and harvesting cashmere is the fruit of traditional know-how, handed down from generation to generation. The know-how held by Mongolia's nomadic herders includes good breeding practices, knowledge of the environment and climate - essential for the goats to provide the soft cashmere down - as well as the location of grazing and forage areas.
There has to be enough wind for the herds to produce the cashmere wool that will protect them from the biting cold. Breeders therefore need to know where they will find the ideal climatic conditions to take their herds. The quality of cashmere depends on the harshness of the climate. So, after a particularly harsh winter, nomads know that the animals will be provided with high-quality down. On the contrary, after a mild winter, the hair tends to be coarser.
History
It was in the 1970s that Mongolia realized the potential of cashmere wool. To develop the national economy and create jobs, in 1977 the government set up GOBI, a company to market Mongolian cashmere. It was aided in this task by the Japanese government, which provided technical assistance and subsidies to enable it to set up the first Mongolian factory in 1981. The company focuses primarily on exports, but also manufactures products from raw materials. It soon became one of the world's biggest cashmere exporters.
Mongolia's cashmere wool is of rare quality, and demand for it grew until its production became one of the main sources of income for the nomadic herders who make up around a third of the Mongolian population. Raw wool is their main source of livelihood: almost 80% of Mongolian cashmere is exported, and only 20% is processed locally.
Price drop
With demand for cashmere exploding, both in Mongolia and abroad, a black market developed in the early 1990s. This illegal activity accounts for 20-50% of all Mongolian cashmere exports. It jeopardizes the reputation of Mongolian cashmere, as smuggled cashmere is mixed with other wools and is therefore of inferior quality.
At the same time, Mongolia's exit from the Soviet bloc and its opening up to the market economy in 1992 led to a significant drop in the wages of nomadic herders. Faced with poverty and foreign competition, they concentrated their efforts on increasing the number of goats, multiplying the number of animals to meet demand and increase supply. By mixing breeds and crossing cashmere goats with other species, they have also reduced the quality of the cashmere produced.
Between 1990 and 1999, the number of goats in the country rose from 6 to 11 million. Today, it has reached 27 million, for a population of just over 3 million.
Environmental consequences
The inordinate increase in the number of goats bred for cashmere has not been without consequences. As early as 2002, the facts were stark: 70% of Mongolia's steppes were considered degraded. The cause was soil impoverishment and desertification due to overgrazing. Goats graze vegetation down to the roots, preventing it from growing back. They tear up and damage steppe grass. They are particularly aggressive on soils, and actively contribute to the invasion of sand on land where vegetation cover has diminished.
This excessive use of livestock has jeopardized the ecosystem of Mongolian grasslands. The decline in biodiversity is measurable, and the land in the most densely populated areas can no longer regenerate.
Solutions
Economic sectors. To respond to the environmental emergency, solutions are deployed by the government and many associations to protect the steppe. Thus, the Mongolian State works to set up economic channels allowing to develop the products resulting from the breeding. The objective is to increase the selling price of wool, in order to allow nomadic breeders to reduce the number of their herds while respecting the capacity of ecosystems.
Sustainable Kashmir. In the same vein, organizations have created sustainable cashmere production channels. The latter comes from preserved pastures and is managed respectfully to safeguard the environment as well as the nomadic cultures. These initiatives, which are multiplying as awareness is growing, are welcome to allow the craft related to cashmere to continue without damaging the landscapes of Mongolia.
Yak and camel wool. In recent years, alternatives to cashmere have appeared on Mongolian markets. Yak and camel wools, almost as fine and just as soft, are harvested from the young in the same way as cashmere. Two to three year old baby yaks and one year old camels are hand-combed by the herders who collect the down from the animals. Once cleaned and carded, the fibers are woven into extremely soft and warm clothing. As luxurious as these products are, they are more ecological and environmentally friendly than cashmere. Indeed, yaks and camels, unlike goats, do not damage the soil by grazing vegetation.
Mongolian cashmere products
While silk was once used to make traditional Mongolian outfits, today cashmere is an increasingly popular material for folk costumes. Mongolia's national companies produce a wide range of winter garments, which can be found both in specialized boutiques and on the shelves of the country's markets. Whether sweaters, scarves, hats, vests or even dresses, their excellent thermal insulation and softness make them luxury products. To select a wool that is both high quality and respectful of Mongolian steppes and traditions, you'll need to choose cashmere with a sustainable and responsible label.
The GOBI and GOYO factory outlets are particularly well known in the capital for their vast selection of cashmere garments, quality wool and affordable prices. With over 2,000 employees, GOBI remains one of Mongolia's top ten employers, and has been committed to ecology and sustainable development for some years now. You'll have no trouble finding what you're looking for in one of the six boutiques dotted around Ulaanbaatar!
