Dear customers,
some of you may have read it in the news last week. At our yarn manufacturer Michell a video about the shearing process was recorded by the organization PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).
As you know, we are a young start-up. In 2018 and 2019 we travelled through the Andes for weeks at our own expense and got a picture on the spot. We only live by sustainable practices, which we can represent through our own experience.
Transparency and trust are important to us and we would like to communicate our view openly with you.
The video shows indeed, how the people on Mallkini Farm treat the animals very roughly, not at all animal-friendly and quite alarmingly. Here we would like to emphasize that this is not the norm.
The animals often represent the only source of income for Peruvian Andean farmers and are touched with much more love. Alpaca farming is deeply rooted in Peruvian history. From the shepherd who breeds and cares for the alpaca to the knitters who learned from their parents how to sort, classify, spin and knit the fibers. Without the export of wool, Peruvian farmers have no income and an important part of the cultural heritage is lost.
Contrary to the decisions of other fashion companies to immediately terminate the partnership with Michell, we decided to wait and see how the clarification process within Michell progresses.
One of our values is humanity. The lives of the people in our production countries are our inspiration. And so we celebrate successes together as well as failures on our journey to make the fashion world more sustainable.
We are in close contact with our partners Carlos and Claudia from Peruvian Traditions during the clarification process.
We believe that Michell has been awarded the GOTS certificate, Organic Content Standard or Fair Trade certificate by independent and leading organizations for good reason.
If it turns out that this incident was not an isolated case, we will of course stop our cooperation immediately.
If you have any questions or concerns, please write me directly:
I thank you for your trust.
August Statement incl. case results https://www.michell.com.pe/blog/publication/id/22
Updates about the investigation: https://www.michell.com.pe/blog/publication/id/20
Statement Michell: https://www.michell.com.pe/blog/publication/id/18
