For years, mohair production had remained relatively under-the-radar as fur, and more recently angora, came under scrutiny by animal rights groups. But this year, the video showing workers slow killing and mutilating crying goats in South Africa has seen large numbers of retailers reacting. South Africa is the source of more than 50% of the world’s mohair.Notonthehighstreet, which hosts the products of more than 5,000 creative small businesses in the UK, told PETA that it has informed these partners that it “will be implementing a ban on the sale of products containing mohair through our platform” from the end of next year.

The PETA exposé, which was filmed early this year, has resulted in mohair bans by a number of big names and has also seen prosecutions of several Angora goat farmers in South Africa, as well as police investigations into practices on goat farms.Part of the problem is caused by the fact that the workers who shear the goats are paid by the volume they produce and so frequently cut corners, resulting in huge suffering for the goats.”Notonthehighstreet recognises that no throw or pair of gloves is worth the blood, fear, and cries of gentle baby goats – and all other retailers should too,” said PETA Director of Corporate Projects Yvonne Taylor. Other companies to ban mohair sales include Asos, M&S John Lewis, and H&M.