Today there are more than 200 breeds of sheep. Each breed is particularly suited for fleece, meat, hide or milk, or a combination. Sheep's wool is still the most widely used of any animal. Though sheep continue to play an important part of the global agricultural economy, their role has diminished with the greater use of synthetic fibers in the textile industry and a dietary preference for chicken, pig and cow among people. These factors have led to a decline in demand for sheep and their products. On the plus side, sheep do continue be vitally important to the niche markets of organic and sustainable agriculture and in developing nations that rely on subsistence farming.

Currently, the largest flocks of sheep are kept in China, Australia, India and Iran, for both wool and meat, and the major centers of wool production are Australia, New Zealand, Nations in South and Central America and the British Isles.

Originally published in New Cloth Market; July 2009