This month, we talked to the Commercial Manager of CLAMASAC, the Peruvian company that manufactures alpaca tops certified in “Responsible Alpaca Standard” (RAS).

What is the history of the company?

The company is a family business, since it was founded by my grandfather in 1967. Today, from the district of Paucarpata in the province of Arequipa, Peru (the heart of the Andes Mountains), we supply high quality alpaca tops to different companies in the textile sector. Quality achieved by perfecting both traditional and industrial processes over time.

What are your values when it comes to production and environmental care?

We assume that the economic development of the company goes hand in hand with social commitment and environmental protection. Since we generate good relations with our suppliers in the alpaca-breeding communities, we take care of all resources and seek a harmonious coexistence of our company with the environment and with the social context in which we develop our operations.

How do you work together with alpaca-breeding communities?

In these more than fifty years of work and commitment, we have established close ties with the alpaca-breeding communities in the south of our country, especially those located in Arequipa and Puno. So we have the added value that we work very well and a lot with the high Andean communities of our country, since the alpaca is bred by microcomuneros, which in our country are 150,000. We, as an industry, rely heavily on them, since they are an agent of continuous improvement. We believe that the development of the textile industry is not possible without supporting the main suppliers of raw materials with whom we work. Working together with the communities is key to achieving a higher quality fiber. For this we seek a fair deal and a fair price and to achieve this we close these points 4 months before the start of the collection campaign.

What are the characteristics of the alpaca?

We work with an ancestral and very noble animal, such as the alpaca, which gives us the possibility of sheltering the world. So we have a loyalty to the animal and that is our goal. In Peru there are between 4 and 5 million alpacas, their natural habitat is from 2900 meters above sea level, where the pastures where the animal feeds grow. Therefore, Peru is the ideal place for the alpaca, with more than 80% of the total number of alpacas in the world.

What are the characteristics of alpaca fiber?

Alpaca fiber is a natural fiber, with many very good and noble characteristics. The alpaca has a soft coat, that allows to obtain fine, hypoallergenic textiles, it has CO2 particles in the same hair, which helps it to be used in very cold climates.

The properties of this fiber and its delicate yarns allow the manufacture not only of knitted or woven garments, such as coats, sweaters, dresses, bividis or tops, but also accessories and handicrafts.

Why did you decide to become certified with the Responsible Alpaca Standard (RAS) and what is its importance?

The RAS allows us to treat the alpaca with respect, respecting the Andean cosmovision of caring for this noble animal and we must act in a sustainable way with the animal so that this is sustainable over time. This type of certification is of great importance to show the world that we are doing a good job here in Peru, since certification allows us to demonstrate that there is a robust system of controls throughout the chain, from breeding to the final product. So consumers can be sure that the alpaca fiber in the products they choose is truly RAS. In addition, certification is a benchmark in the industry because it drives improvements in animal care, land management and social welfare. Globally, consumers are demanding that fibers must be sustainably and responsibly produced in order to be worn. This obliges us to show them that we are aware of what we do and act according to good practices.

What is Tops?

Tops is our company’s flagship product. It is transformed alpaca fiber, which can be used to produce yarns or fabrics that, in turn, will be used in the manufacture of clothing.

How is its production process?

Alpaca lives mainly in the triangle between the highlands of Cuzco, Arequipa and Puno. In the area there are 150,000 families that live off this animal. They take care of the care and grazing of the animal. We ourselves go up there with our own employees to collect the fibers, since we buy directly from the community members.

The alpaca is sheared only once a year, because by technical norms we must wait for the animal’s hair to grow for 12 to 14 months and only then can the shearing be done. Once the animal is sheared, we collect the fiber.

Then we bring it to our industrial plants, because it has a first classification process. We have had our own plant for 6 years, currently our installed capacity of combing is 75,000 kg of tops per month. The sorting process is carried out by master sorters. Since the selection of the alpaca fiber is a traditional and handmade technique performed by qualified personnel, which requires a special touch and an attentive eye to distinguish and classify the different qualities of the fiber.

Later these fibers enter their industrial processes. The first thing we do is washing, where the fiber is rinsed and washed in tubs. Then the fiber goes through a drying process, this is done with large dryers. Then we go to the morle, which does is to finish removing small solid particles that are inside the fiber of the animal.

Once this is finished, we move on to the first process with the comb, which consists of combing the hair with large rollers that are the cardas. The purpose is to smooth the fiber and increase its smoothness. It seeks uniformity and resistance, cleanliness, softness, shine and improvement of the visual appearance of the fiber.

The Tops is the generic process to make any alpaca fabric and we do it according to qualities and the most requested are the baby alpaca and fliz.

Where do you commercialize?

The company has been growing very fast in the last few years, so we are internationalizing. We currently export 70% of our production to the European Union (with Italy as the main destination) and the other 30% goes to China.

How can consumers get more information?

People can contact us at https://clamasac.com.pe and they can also write to me at mmacedogt@clamasac.com.pe.

What are your future plans?

In the next few years we seek to continue our work dedicating ourselves to the commercialization and processing of alpaca fiber, with the aim of positioning it in the best markets in the world. That is why we aim to open our alpaca hair yarn business unit in 2026. In this way we will be able to supply the demand of smaller markets in Peru. And also as a company vision we have planned that by 2030 we have to be the best alpaca tops combing company in Peru. For that we are going to invest in machinery and human resources. We are very conscious of who provides us with the fiber, so we work a lot on social responsibility with the Andean communities.

If you are interested in finding out about this certification you can contact us by email at oia@oia.com.ar

Galería de Fotos