Leitrim sheep farmer Kevin Comiskey says a major opportunity is being missed to develop a unique brand for Irish wool.
The Leitrim man who's also Chairman of the IFA Sheep Committee is calling on Minister Pippa Hackett to do something to revitalise what could be a lucrative market.
Hs says that at present farmers only get between 10 and 20 cent per kilo of wool, because there are no facilities to collect, wash or grade it.
A study was commissioned by Minister Hackett on the issue but Mr Comiskey says there's been no word from her 10 months after it was presented.
The Leitrim sheep farmer says Ireland could learn a lot from how the government supports the sector in the UK.
He says there were good prices for wool here back in the late 80's and that could happen again if the proper supports were put in place.
"I remember it used to be 80/85 pence per pound which would equate to 2 euro per kilo in today's price. There was a significant income from it and there's now a significant loss of income to the farmer from it and with today's production costs and everything, we have to get every penny we can from what we produce".
