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The Canadian Co-operative Wool Growers Limited was established in 1918 by members of Canada’s sheep industry as a national system for collecting and marketing wool on a co-operative basis. The principle was simple but powerful: regardless of the size of a producer’s clip, the time of year it was received, or the distance from market, each member would receive the same price for the same grade of wool.
As an organization owned by producers, the Co-operative operates as their marketing instrument. It collects, grades, measures, and markets members’ wool, deducts operating costs, and returns the remaining proceeds directly to the growers.
Today, the Co-operative grades and markets approximately 3 million pounds of raw wool annually from producers across Canada. Wool is classified into three general categories: fine, medium, and coarse. Each class is marketed wherever the strongest global price is available, with China being a major buyer. Wool is received directly from producers by truck or rail, then graded according to type, quality, fibre diameter (micron), length, yield, colour, and preparation. Similar types are hydraulically pressed into compact bales weighing up to 1,200 pounds. Each bale is core sampled to obtain objective measurement reports for international marketing. Approximately 90 percent of Canadian wool is exported.
The company’s mandate remains clear: to operate as a producer-owned co-operative that markets wool at the best possible price while running an efficient operation that maximizes returns to members.
The head office and primary warehouse are located in Carleton Place, Ontario, in a building rich with Canadian railway history. The structure once served as the roundhouse and machine shops for the Canadian Pacific Railway from 1890 to 1939, employing up to 200 men. When the railway operations moved to Smiths Falls in 1939, it was a significant loss for the town.
In the fall of 1940, however, the building reopened under new ownership — not by the railway, but by the wool growers. At the outset, the site still contained railway tracks, a turntable, wheels, and heavy machinery. With scrap iron in high demand during the early years of World War II, what might have been a liability became an asset. After an extensive cleanup and repurposing, the Co-operative began operations in Carleton Place.
Situated along the direct CPR line connecting Western Canada to Montreal, the location proved ideal for receiving wool from the West and shipping it through Montreal to England, Holland, Germany, and destinations across Canada. Although some export ports were closed during wartime, they reopened after hostilities ended.
Initially, major warehouses were located in Weston, Ontario. In 1967, due to changes in the wool industry, those facilities were sold and all grading operations were consolidated in Carleton Place. Administrative offices remained in Toronto until 1972, when they too were relocated. Today, the offices occupy what was once the railway’s storage and boiler rooms.
Beyond wool marketing, the Co-operative operates CCWG Livestock Supply outlets across Canada and The Real Wool Shop in Carleton Place. The organization also publishes an annual Canadian Co-operative Wool Growers Magazine & Livestock Supplies Catalogue, providing industry information and mail-order access to livestock supplies, equestrian products, and clothing. E-commerce is available through ccwg.ca and realwoolshop.ca.
In 1979, the Co-operative transformed the old CPR coal bins into retail space, opening The Real Wool Shop. While the warehouse represents the first stage of wool’s journey, the shop showcases the final product — finished wool goods ready to wear. In 2006, the former engine house of the CPR roundhouse was renovated into additional retail space. Today, the building proudly displays railway memorabilia throughout, preserving its industrial heritage while continuing to serve Canada’s wool producers.
Canadian sheep ready for grazing on the BC forestry cut block.
Photo courtesy of Chuck & Marg Emery, Clearwater, BC.
Yes — more than three million pounds each year.
Wool arrives in Carleton Place, Ontario from producers across the country to be graded at the national headquarters of the Canadian Co-operative Wool Growers Limited. Farmer-owned and established in 1918, the Co-operative was created to market Canada’s wool clip on behalf of its members.
Today, the organization operates from a remarkable stone railway building constructed in 1887 to service locomotives. Traces of its original purpose remain throughout the structure — a living piece of Canadian industrial history. Wool is graded here year-round.
The Wool Growers, The Real Wool Shop, and CCWG Livestock Supplies & Equestrian Centre all share this historic space — just a 30-minute drive from Ottawa, Canada’s capital — making it a destination well worth the visit.
~ guided tours available weekdays between 10am - 3pm, just call 613-257-2714 ext 4 to book your time ~