Alpacas in Fashion on the Farm, Runway
By ALISON LAPP, Associated Press
December 21, 2006

PHILADELPHIA 

The fashion world may seem a long way from the barn. But an increasing number of people are leaving behind their high-stress jobs and turning to alpaca farming as a low-key yet lucrative venture resulting in designer goods that boast the softness of cashmere and the warmth of wool. 

 

  
 
Raising alpacas — a South American farm animal that looks like a puffy cross between a llama and a sheep — has become a fast-growing lifestyle choice for people who are ready to slow down or who want to try their hand at crafting designer fashions with the luxury fabric the creatures produce. 

"Being on the corporate treadmill gets old after a while," said Maggie Wright, a software analyst who started raising alpacas on her farm in East Greenville, Pa., after "falling in love" with the bug-eyed animals on a trip to Peru four years ago. 

On the slopes of their native Andean mountains, alpacas are raised for their fleece, a soft and lanolin-free fiber that is often compared to cashmere, with the added bonus of being hypoallergenic. 

Increasingly, upscale department stores such as Neiman Marcus and prominent fashion designers like Giorgio Armani, Marc Jacobs and Ralph Lauren feature 100 percent alpaca or alpaca blends in their fashions, ranging in price from $28 for a lightweight sweater purchased online to $395 for long designer sweaters at a high-end retail outlet. Hand-knit items sell for much more and often exceed $1,000. 

The United States opened its doors to alpaca imports in 1984, and the fledgling industry here is still primarily based on building and improving the national herd. American farmers focus on breeding baby alpacas, or crias, and they profit from selling these carefully cultivated youngsters with the most desirable qualities — dense fiber, coveted coloring, proportional body composition and gentle temperament. Top quality herdsires can command more than $250,000, with the average price tags running from $12,000 to $30,000 for bred females. 

But beyond the investment potential and tax breaks, alpaca owners say it’s the laid-back lifestyle of raising the curious creatures and creating homegrown alpaca goods that really drew them to the business. 

Alpacas’ relatively small size, lack of upper teeth and generally docile temperament make them easier to handle than many farm animals. And the fact that breeders can turn a profit without killing them for meat makes alpacas an attractive option for those who are not so comfortable with the less cute and cuddly side of farm life. 

Wright, 45, maintains her career in information technology while living on the farm — now a business by the name of Kraussdale Alpacas — with her 11 animals. Her plan to grow her herd for seven to 10 years until she is able to live solely off alpaca sales is typical of many breeders, who use alpaca breeding as a way to phase into retirement. 

As the American flock grows, farmers are beginning to take more interest in building a domestic fiber industry. The Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association, the pre-eminent industry organization, estimates that there are about 80,000 alpacas spread between 400,000 farms across the country but setting up full-scale fiber mills might require an alpaca count in the millions. 

Alpaca owners who want to take advantage of their animals’ fleece now can enter the fiber industry on three levels: as part of a national co-op that strives to build a large-volume industry; by contributing to specialty craft and boutique stores; and by spinning alpaca yarn into sweaters, scarves and other garments in their own homes. 

She sends her fiber to The Alpaca Fiber Cooperative of North America Inc., which partners with existing textile mills, sharing equipment for making clothing, and looks for other uses for coarser fibers such as felting, rugs and stuffing.