One simple answer: it’s a quality product, made by people who have spent 40 YEARS researching how to make it the best.
Biomag is the originator of the woollen underlay. We have spent four decades trialling the various types of wool and developing a special blend that gives maximum support and comfort, with durability and performance.
Every batch of wool used in a BioMag underlay can be traced back to the farm it came from.
Our wool blend is specially designed and not available anywhere else on the NZ market. It is a blend of Merino and Downs breeds specially selected for their comfort, strength and performance. Merino wool alone does not have the durability and strength of the downs wool.
Not only is our wool grown in New Zealand and Australia – but just as importantly, it is processed here as well.
The colour of the wool in the underlay you buy is directly linked to the treatment process. All wool used in the manufacture of BioMag underlays is fleece wool: this is the best wool, from the sheep’s back, not the skirting wool from the belly, or dirty wool.
The fleece wool used in a BioMag underlay has ONLY been washed or scoured. It has not been treated with chemicals. This does not damage the wool in any way.
Dirty / skirting etc. wools are put through a process called carbonising, where they go through an acid bath to clean the wool of dirt, vegetation and sheep droppings. The acid bath weakens the wool but leaves it looking snowy-white.
Fleece wools that are washed naturally have a creamy colour. So you need to look for creamy coloured wool, NOT white wool. You should steer clear of snowy-white wools that are cheap, such as you will find in products from China, or in products where NZ wool has been processed in China. They are cheaper, but they have been processed with acids and the wool has low strength.
Let us give you an example: A cheap jumper made of cheap, carbonized wool, is weak – it “pills” easily, and doesn’t last. A good high-quality jumper made with fleece will cost you a lot more because the wool has come from the best part of the sheep, but it is strong and durable and it will last you for years. Which do you think is the better option?
The main reason NZ and Australian grown and processed wool is so highly valued, and brings better prices than wools from third world countries, is because those countries still use banned chemicals. These wools generally end up in China where they are blended in to make the good wool go further.
In China, there is NO environmental quality control. Arsenic and DDT are residual in the wools from third world countries. It’s a bit like walking into the home of someone who smokes: you can’t see it, but you know a smoker lives there. The cheaper, poorer quality wool processed in China comes from China itself but also countries such as Russia and South America. China also processes poorer quality wool from NZ that is dirty etc. So you need to make sure you are buying (a) quality NZ or Australian wool which is (b) also processed here.
All the wool we use at BioMag is treated to the Woolmark Standard of washability. Wool you get from China is not certified by Woolmark. Basically, YOU DONT KNOW WHAT YOU’RE GETTING. Wool products that use wool grown and processed in NZ or Australia will last at least three times as long as cheaper products imported from China, or processed in China with those horrible chemicals to make it look good.
It always pays to buy quality. BioMag.