Loro Piana Honors Record Wool Bale Achievements at Annual San Francisco Ceremony
San Francisco hosted the 26th annual Loro Piana Record Bale Award ceremony at City Hall on May 28, spotlighting top Merino wool producers from Australia and New Zealand. The 2024 edition awarded Australia’s Pyrenees Park farm for producing wool with a 10.5-micron fibre, marking a continued streak after its 2023 world record of 10.2 microns. For perspective, a single human hair is about 80 microns thick.
The event was led by Loro Piana CEO Damien Bertrand and Deputy Chairman Pier Luigi Loro Piana. Guests included Andrew Bosworth, Sergey Brin, James and Penny Coulter, Eddy Cue, Juliet de Baubigny, Alan Dye, Vanessa Getty, and Mayor Daniel Lurie.
Established in 1997, the Loro Piana Record Bale Award recognizes two farms annually—one in Australia and one in New Zealand—for producing the year’s finest bale of Merino wool. The competition promotes advances in wool fineness and flock care.
“The quest for the Record Bale is not driven by publicity, its only aim is to incentivise breeders to produce the finest wool bale. Since the improvement and fineness of the wool comes from the selection and care of the flocks, all the herds have benefited from the Record Bale competition. Thanks to this programme, Loro Piana has pushed the boundaries of fineness, creating the thinnest wool in the world – the world record bale with a fibre of a mere 10.2 microns,” said Pier Luigi Loro Piana.
Damien Bertrand added, “The Record Bale award celebrates the hard work of truly exceptional breeders with passion and innovation at the heart of their approach. It challenges them to continuously strive for excellence, and enables us to create unique masterpieces together for the most discerning connoisseurs.”
This year, Pyrenees Park in Australia, operated by Pamela, Robert, and Bradley Sandlant, took the award for their 10.5-micron bale. New Zealand’s Visulea Farm, run by Ivonne and Barrie Payne, earned recognition with a 10.8-micron fibre.
Breeding advancements have narrowed micron differences to near-imperceptible levels, reflecting an ongoing commitment to wool quality. These high-grade fibres originate from carefully selected Merino sheep, bred by experienced farmers over generations.
The world-record 10.2-micron bale remains housed at Loro Piana’s Quarona factory in Piedmont, preserved in a glass case until a new record surpasses it. Upon replacement, the bale is used to craft exclusive garments for a select clientele.
All competing bales are purchased by Loro Piana due to their fineness and are transformed into garments under The Gift of Kings® line. Named after a tradition of Spanish monarchs gifting Merino sheep to European royals, this wool is lightweight, adaptive to climate, and moisture-absorbent up to 35% of its weight. Each garment includes a label verifying the wool’s origin, year of shearing, and micron count.
The annual Record Bale Award underscores Loro Piana’s continued focus on sourcing top-tier Merino wool and reflects the brand’s sustained pursuit of textile refinement.
