Alpaca wool makes for "green" clothing

HAMPDEN, Mass. (WWLP) - Alpacas may be better known for producing good fertilizer, but their wool is also good for the environment.

At the Hampden Hills Alpaca Farm in Hampden, alpacas are being raised to produce a new wave of environmentally friendly clothing. Socks, hats, shawls and even coats can be made from alpaca wool.

Alpaca wool is about five times warmer than sheep wool and it's also treated with fewer chemicals which make it greener.

According to Erica Dwyer, the owner of Hamden Hills Alpaca Farm, alpaca wool is about five times warmer than sheep wool and it's also treated with fewer chemicals which make it greener.
Sheep wool has grease that needs to be removed with harsh detergent, alpaca wool comes relatively clean.

"Like any harsh detergent, you don't like the harsh chemicals being used and going back into the environment itself. Alpacas [are] so clean you could actually spin it right off the animal being shorn, you don't even have to wash it," said Dwyer.

The environmentally friendly aspect of the alpaca wool and their local origin has been great for some local shoe stores that have replaced designer socks with alpaca wool socks.

"This is kind of a niche that we've found and this is what the people come in for, the alpaca clothing also has been great," said Kevin Lennon, the owner of Shoenique in Longmeadow.

Alpaca wool doesn't contain lanolin which is found in sheep wool and can cause allergies.

If you're interested in the Hampden Hills Alpaca farm, visit their website at hampdenhillsalpacas.net