Mike and Sandra Smith
Mike and Sandra Smith are wool growers who reside in the town of Kingscote on Kangaroo Island.
Kingscote is known for three things: being the smallest town on the Kangaroo Island, the home of
the world’s smallest penguin, and South Australia’s oldest European settlement.
In fact, Mike’s father was a soldier settler on the island, originally starting the farm that Mike has
taken over for the past ten years. With his own children grown and gone from Kangaroo Island, Mike
and Sandra now run the farm together with the family dog.
For Mike, farming is a chance to improve without interruption – a chance to make genetic
improvements with complete control.
Tourists flock to Kingscote on a regular basis, but for the Smith’s it is has been home for generations.
Here, they farm 4000 merino sheep in various breeds – the Border Leicester Merino, the Bruler X
and the XB.
Q. What does it mean to you to know who is wearing your wool?
A. Truthfully, I dont think about it too much, I just focus on the work at hand each day and doing
that to the best of my ability. But now that you ask, we produce a great product, and I hope others
think so too.
Q. What would you like to say to the person wearing your wool?
A. I would tell them that it’s the best product for a number of reasons. Firstly, it’s economical, but it
also has good characteristics.