The project application for “Bridge builder for personal small-scale design, from farm to consumer” describes how it is difficult for the producer of a raw material to reach directly to the end customer in an easily accessible way today. Potentially, there are many consumers who would like to use these raw materials, but in order to do so, there is no process that makes the trade user-friendly for both consumers and producers.

Now a project is being started on how to build this bridge with designer Erica Laurell as project manager and initiator.

- The idea is that by learning from old methods and crafts and combining them with new and innovative technologies, we can enable solutions for how small-scale local primary production can meet the specific needs of the end customer and contribute to circular consumption,” she says.

The project application describes the current situation.

“The wool from Swedish sheep has so far been used much less than, for example, in Norway and England. Instead, we import large quantities from, for example, Australia and New Zealand. Swedish wool is considered less user-friendly than the foreign one and is also considered to lack abilities for many breeding methods and end products that reduce competitiveness.”

- I have had several research projects on Swedish sheep breeds and I find this project very interesting because it can both provide information that can be used in further research and can contribute to more wool from Swedish sheep breeds being used, says Anna M Johansson at SLU.

The Digital Product Passport (DPP) is the backbone of the project: it ensures transparency and traceability from the origin of the wool to the finished product in line with the EU's future Ecodesign Regulation and enables data-driven quality assurance and new circular business models.

In order to develop a prototype app that is an intermediary between the agricultural sector and the customer, a group is now being formed. Through this innovation, the animal owner/farmer can directly reach the consumer and at the same time get information about what the consumer wants and how the raw material can be adapted to the wishes. This means that everything produced could be used, i.e. even smaller quantities and things that would otherwise become waste. Technology and digitalization provide a direct contact with the end customer, eliminating unnecessary intermediaries. At the same time, there is the possibility of developing methods that refine the raw material to meet the needs of the consumer and thus make the product more personalized.

- We see that innovation can play a part in increasing the competitiveness of Swedish local production and also, in the long term, in Swedish preparedness. We have selected a small part in primary production that we believe is good to build a method on and then be able to expand to other raw materials,” says Erica Laurell.

The project has gathered many different competencies, also to find out how to adapt the properties of the wool to meet the needs of the end customer. Feeding, breeding, grooming and shearing can affect and properties of the wool will be measured in the laboratory at Wagenfelder wool spinneri. The app will enable the consumer to digitally view the product before purchasing the raw material and will be able to provide the customer with their own knitting pattern that can be knitted by hand according to the customer's body measurements. The app could then be further developed for other raw materials in agriculture and animal husbandry.

- It feels good to be part of a project that focuses on Swedish wool and to contribute with my knowledge of dyeing but also to pass on my knowledge after 40 years of experience, says colorist Claes Hedström.

The project is expected to lead to reduced greenhouse gas emissions, reduced waste and the opportunity to buy products from animals that live well for them.

- The project is important for me, my fellow farmers, Swedish citizens and society in general to have access and yield from the resource that is so close, concludes Mats Pettersson, sheep farmer at Starrhammars farm.

The work of the Innovation Group is part of the Strategic Plan for the EU's Common Agricultural Policy 2023-2027. The goal is to create good solutions to deal with the challenges facing the food sector and rural areas, such as climate change, threatened biodiversity, and the sustainability and competitiveness of companies.

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Project “Bridge builder for personal small-scale design, from farm to consumer”.

Actors: Designer Erica Laurell, sheep farmer Mats Petterson, Rodens Wullbruk, colorist Claes Hedström, Game designer Anton Ekberg, Anna M Johansson, researcher in production genetics and sheep breeding SLU, Innovation platform FBL in collaboration with Lund University.

Project Time: Sep 2025-2026-01-31

Financiers: Swedish Agency for Agriculture, EU