Cashmere is a highly prized natural fiber, known for its exceptional softness, warmth, and lightweight feel. It is a luxurious material used in a variety of textiles, from high-end garments to scarves and blankets. This sought-after fiber does not come from sheep, but rather from specific types of goats that possess a unique undercoat.
Himalayan Origins
Cashmere goats originated in the harsh, high-altitude Himalayan regions, including Kashmir, Mongolia, Tibet, and China. The extreme cold and challenging environment in these mountainous terrains were crucial for the development of the goats’ distinctive fine undercoat. This dense, soft undercoat serves as a natural insulation, allowing the goats to survive temperatures that can drop to -40°C.
The term “cashmere” is an anglicization of Kashmir, a region historically central to the fiber’s production and trade. For centuries, nomadic tribes in these areas raised these goats, valuing their unique fleece. The Changthangi, also known as Pashmina goats, native to the high plateaus of Ladakh in India and Tibet, are especially renowned for producing some of the finest cashmere. Other indigenous breeds like the Inner Mongolian goat and the Tibetan Plateau goat also contribute significantly to the global supply, thriving in similar cold and arid climates.
Distinguishing Cashmere Goats
Cashmere goats are not a single breed but rather a type of goat characterized by their ability to produce a fine, soft underdown beneath a coarser outer layer of guard hair. This undercoat, which grows as days shorten in preparation for winter, is the source of cashmere fiber. The fiber’s quality is determined by its fineness, length, and crimp, with finer fibers often achieving higher premiums.
Cashmere fibers are exceptionally fine, typically measuring 12 to 19 microns in diameter, significantly finer than human hair. This fineness contributes to the fabric’s soft texture, lightweight feel, and excellent insulation. The Changthangi goat, for example, produces fiber with an average diameter of 12-13 micrometers and a length of 55-60 millimeters, making it highly prized. Other cashmere-producing goats include the Australian Cashmere Goat, Hexi, Liaoning, and Zhongwei breeds, each with specific characteristics and fiber yields.
Harvesting the Fine Fiber
Cashmere fiber is collected once a year during the spring molting season, typically March to May, when goats naturally shed their winter coats. This timing ensures the highest quality and quantity of fiber. Herders primarily use two methods for harvesting: hand-combing or mechanical shearing.
Hand-combing is a traditional and labor-intensive process that involves using a coarse comb to gently pull tufts of the fine undercoat from the animal. This method yields fiber with longer staples and less guard hair contamination, resulting in higher quality cashmere. While shearing is a faster alternative, it tends to mix the fine undercoat with coarser guard hairs, requiring additional processing to separate them. After collection, the raw fiber undergoes a de-hairing process to remove guard hairs and other impurities, preparing it for further processing.
Worldwide Cultivation
While cashmere goats originated in the Himalayan regions, their cultivation has expanded globally due to demand for the fiber. Today, major cashmere-producing countries include China, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Iran, and various Central Asian republics. China is the largest producer of raw cashmere, accounting for approximately 60% of global output, with Mongolia following as a significant contributor.
Other countries like Australia and the United States have also established cashmere goat farming, adapting these animals to new environments. In Australia, for instance, the foundation stock for Australian Cashmere Goats was developed from local feral goat populations in the late 1970s. Despite the widespread cultivation, the unique climatic conditions of their original habitat continue to influence the quality of the cashmere produced, with Himalayan regions still yielding some of the finest fibers.