Royal online shop to stop using mohair

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jan 29, 2019

The Royal Collection Trust has committed to stop selling products containing mohair on the royal online shop and any other stores following a Peta exposé.

The Royal Collection Shop sells gifts, soft furnishings, jewellery, books and souvenirs commissioned by Buckingham Palace.

On Tuesday it confirmed it had removed a teddy bear made with mohair from its online shop and that it was exploring alternative sources for future products.

It follows an appeal from animal rights group Peta to the Prince of Wales, where the non-profit organisation shared a video exposé showing shearers in South Africa working carelessly and torturing angora goats.

Peta said South Africa is the source of more than 50% of the world’s mohair, and that shearers are usually paid by volume, not by the hour.

“The Royal Collection Trust's decision to stop selling mohair is a tremendous act of kindness towards gentle goats," said Peta director of corporate projects Yvonne Taylor.

“Peta urges all shoppers to read labels carefully to ensure that their purchases don't support cruelty to animals.”

Marks & Spencer, The White Company, and Aquascutum also agreed to stop using mohair in their products last year.