Just over half of Australia’s woolgrowers voted to pay a 1.5 per cent levy on their wool sales for the next three years instead of the current 2pc levy, recommended by AWI. 

Mr McCullough believes the proximity of 1.5pc to the 2pc option played a major role, as did the challenging seasonal conditions woolgrowers are facing at present. 

He also believes the WoolPoll result was a reflection of the large financial reserves held by the company. 

“Those reserves are pretty public, and pretty large,” Mr McCullough said. 

“The performance of the company is well documented. We started eight years ago with a market indicator of 760c and it got to 2100c. I think our record speaks for itself in terms of performance.” 

AWI holds reserves of $121 million and Mr McCullough warned they could be used to offset the levy change. 

“Potentially, in a time like this, we can draw down on some of the reserves and try and manage the drop in revenue,” he said. 

“But that is yet to be decided what level of draw down that is.”

But WoolProducers Australia President Richard Halliday said WPA strongly believed that 1.5pc would provide ample money for AWI to conduct their current business as well as invest in relevant new areas. 

“The last three financial years has seen expenditure by AWI of between $70 and $88 million per year and the industry got to a good place with that level of investment,” Mr Halliday said. 

AWI is subject to a review of performance (ROP) during every WoolPoll year. 

This year’s review was conducted by advisory firm Ernst and Young who made 82 recommendations relating to concerns with transparency, consultation, and independence of the AWI board.

The AWI board has since been under increasing pressure to swiftly implement all 82 recommendations, culminating in the resignation of longstanding chair Wal Merriman earlier this month. 

But Mr Halliday said WPA’s decision to advocate for a lower levy was not a protest decision or linked to governance concerns.

“Whilst we continue to have concerns around the governance of AWI and their response to many of the recommendations in ROP, these issues were never a factor in our decision to support 1.5pc,” he said. 

He believes that now the levy has been set, AWI’s focus must be on the implementation of the review recommendations in the fastest way possible. 

Minister for Agriculture David Littleproud said he was yet to receive AWI’s formal submission, but he expects to change the regulations to enable the 1.5pc levy rate to take effect from July 1, 2019.

For the first time in WoolPoll's history, the votes between 1.5pc and 2pc levies were so close that a preference count was needed to determine a final outcome. 

Of the 13,506 votes received, following the allocation of three rounds of preferences, 52.82pc voted in favour of a 1.5pc wool levy. 

Mr McCullough said they will now have to see how the rest of the world reacts to the drop in the wool levy.

“We are now busy making direct contact to all the big processors, brands, and retailers in the world to assure them that it’s not an abandonment, it’s an adjustment,” Mr McCullough said.