A petition launched by North East farmers to get wool to the Olympics has proved so popular with the public that it is now available online.
So far more than 5,500 people have signed the paper version as it makes its way round agricultural shows across the country. And such as been their enthusiasm for the idea of showcasing British wool at the London Games in 2012, that the decision was taken to give more people the chance to sign electronically.
Farmer, Johnny Ball, who hosts the NFU’s Let’s Talk Farming Roadshow, has been travelling round the country all summer and says people are queuing up to support the idea.
“For most people it’s obvious that the Games should be a platform to celebrate the best of British and to be honest you can’t get much more British than wool!
“The wealth of our nation was built on the wool trade and today England alone is home to more than 15 million sheep, representing dozens of different sheep breeds that thrive in different parts of the country.
“Most people I have spoken to have been hugely supportive of the 50,000 farming families that produce the raw material, and see the Games as a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity to highlight the quality of what we produce.”
The petition will run until the second week in October, when a national celebration of all things woollen will take place. This means there are now just six weeks to collect as many signatures as possible.
“The beauty of an online petition is that is it not only easier to spread the word via email, but the electronic version gives people a chance to leave comments on why they are supporting it,” said NFU regional director Richard Ellison.
“Three hundred people have already added their names in just a week and the comments made good reading. It will certainly be a challenge to get a positive response from the Olympic organisers, but we believe that wool is so versatile that it could easily be incorporated.
“Ideas range from British wool red carpets, or woven ribbons from which medals could be hung to commemorative brooches made from wool that could be presented to every competitor in the Games.
“However it’s used, we believe wool could really add something to the Games, its carbon footprint and its reflection of our national heritage and identity.
“We are aiming to achieve 10,000 signatures in total and getting as close as possible to this will be vital for our lobbying work. I hope that as many people as possible from Yorkshire, Durham and Northumberland will log on and add their names.”
Click here to sign the petition petition.
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