Merino Possum from New Zealand. Unique, warm and delicious!

Lanowool offers a range of knitwear produced in New Zealand from a very special material consisting of an exclusive blend of fine merino wool and fur from opossum (a New Zealand purebred).

The special blend of 60% merino wool and 40% opossum coat means that the products are up to 30% warmer than traditional wool products.

The reason is that opossum fur fibers – in relation to other types of fur such as e.g. cashmere, wool and angora – contain more air and thus have a lighter and higher degree of insulation.

When the fur from opossum is combined with merino wool you get a warm and very soft material. At the same time, the mixture of merino wool and opossum coat means that the material does not begin to float.

Merino Possum accessories range consists of mittens, knitwear, scarves, plaids and ponchos. All the products can be washed in the machine (wool wash), but they cannot withstand drying.

The products reject natural dirt due to the high content of fur, so it is not necessary to wash them frequently. Instead, it is recommended to ventilate the products outside – preferably in frost temperatures – then the coat in the material comes out beautifully.

Facts about opossum

Opossum is a herbivorous marsupial that lives exclusively in New Zealand and Australia. It should not be confused with the American carnivorous opossum.

In New Zealand, opossum is well known – not least due to its negative effect on the country's unique ecosystem. There are about 80 million opossums in New Zealand, and they are considered to be one of the worst herbivorous pests as they love to eat their local and rare plants. In a single night, a bunch of opossum, e.g. Eat a whole tree.

Opossum also has a negative impact on New Zealand's rare bird life as eat bird eggs. New Zealand's national bird – the Kiwi bird – which was previously one of the most common birds, is now a rare and endangered bird species due to opossum. A number of organizations including The Royal Forest and Bird Society, the New Zealand Department of Conservation, Friends of Earth and Greenpeace (NZ) have therefore all recommended a continuous reduction of the opossum stock.