Better Choices transforming Australia’s wool industry
CLIENT
Bayer Animal Health
INDUSTRY
Australian Wool Industry
SERVICES
Website, research, advocacy, training, advertising, communication, video production
The challenge
Despite the existence of a new scientific solution to address major animal welfare concerns in sheep, widespread adoption was hindered by traditional practices and a lack of unified communication. The diverse range of stakeholders held conflicting views, making it difficult to implement necessary changes.
17,000,000+
lambs was the estimated market
Discovery
Spinifex started with a question: How can we change farmer attitudes toward adopting new practices for animal welfare?
Medical Insight: A pain relief solution used for children’s skin abrasions proved effective in relieving pain in lambs, combining a local anaesthetic and antiseptic gel spray.
Market Potential: An estimated market of over 17 million lambs.
Farmer Survey: We surveyed sheep farmers and found that 82% believed wound healing and pain relief were important in lamb management practices.
Design
We crafted an executable strategy focusing on:
Audited Welfare Program: Developed for woolgrowers to certify their wool as derived from best-practice animal care methods.
Stakeholder Alignment: Brought together wool brokers, manufacturers, retailers, and animal rights groups to agree on the program.
Digital Platform: Created an accessible online platform to capture on-farm data for wool marketing.
Education Program: Provided comprehensive training on new requirements for woolgrowers.
On-Site Support: Communicated effectively in the wool shed to help sheep producers realise real value from their better choice.
Delivery
Spinifex collaborated with Bayer and industry stakeholders to:
Craft, Test, Deploy Communications: Developed creative content to change farmer attitudes and stakeholder mindsets.
Market and Sell Product: Despite restrictions on mentioning the product by name, we effectively promoted its benefits.
Foster Cultural Change: Emphasized shared accountability, taking a leadership role to inspire honest advocacy and new practices.
92%
of lambs now receive pain relief
Results
Industry Transformation:
At completion Six out of ten lambs receive pain relief, indicating a significant shift in industry practices. This figure is now at nine out of ten lambs.
Empowered Farmers:
The Better Choices audited digital platform captured data on woolgrowers, helping them achieve value from their commitment to animal welfare.
Sustainable Impact:
Improved sheep health and welfare led to better wool yield and quality, benefiting farmers economically.
Where’s the value in a better choice?
❝
The solution required transforming hearts and minds.
Working with Spinifex we gained deep insights of the challenges woolgrowers faced and then used those insights to build a solution woolgrowers could sign up with and position their product as produced ethically to the whole supply chain through to the retailers.
❞
– Andrew Mason
Business Unit Leader at program launch
Bayer Animal Health