Sustainability & Innovation:Responsible LeatherThe practises and processes around leather are beingscrutinised for environmental and social impacts. It's timeto review your supply chain and implement new bestpractise solutions in sustainability

Helen Palmer02.15.21 · 17 minutes

Opus MindOpus Mind

Introduction

Leather is a multibillion dollar global industry and demand for it isincreasing, but so is scrutiny on its environmental and social impacts.

The Sustainable Apparel Coalitions̓ Higg Materials SustainabilityIndex scores leather impact a high 159, compared to cotton's 98 and 44 forpolyester, due to its high contribution to global warming, water use andpollution. This, as well as the steep rise in vegan lifestyles for ethical andenvironmental reasons, has accelerated consumer and brand interest inanimal-free alternatives.

However, leather is an attractive natural and biodegradable material with along history of tradition, cra� and luxury, and its durability andrepairability mean it can last several lifetimes if cared for correctly.

Importantly, so long as the meat industry exists, not using leather as a by-product would be wasteful and tanneries are saving millions of hidesglobally from landfill or incineration every year.

The industry is investing heavily in innovations and practices to lowerleather's impact, from safer tanning chemistry and water efficiency totraceable supply chains, zero-waste initiatives and looking ahead toregenerative farming that could vastly improve leather's C02 footprint.

This report looks at sustainable routes for the leather industry and offerscase studies of industry best practise. Find ways to lower leather's overall impact. US-based Far From Lost uses a zero-waste approach,

using fashion waste remnants for small leather goods

@wearefarfromlost@wearefarfromlost

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1 2345Action points

Team with suppliersimproving supply chaintraceability. Going beyondcertified organic leather,look at regenerativefarming as a long-terminvestment. This practicecan restore soil, enablingthe leather industry toreduce its Co2 footprintand mitigate some of theimpacts of climate change

Use third-partycertifications to evidencesustainable credentialsand align business valueswith product development.Make use of technical helpand industry frameworksand leverage for productdifferentiation andmarketing opportunities

Partner with leadingchemical suppliers andtanneries innovatingchrome- and metal-free,water-saving andalternative tanningprocesses. Set out clearmetrics and workiteratively with leaders inthe supply chain to movetowards lower-impactsolutions

Reclaim factory scrapsand deadstock skins forsmall leather goods,leveraging limitedavailability andcustomisation to createunique pieces. Work withmaterial innovators whocan turn leather scrap intohigh-quality, durable newleathers

Identify pre-competitivepartnerships with otherbrands to create ademand for post-purchasea�ercare. Use this as a wayto foster brand loyalty,bring in new revenuestreams, createopportunities for newskilled jobs and minimiseleather's overall impact

Source leather fromresponsible,traceable supplychains

Own accountabilitythrough third-partycerti�cation

Invest in alternative,low-impact tanningprocesses

Identify zero-wasteinitiatives tominimise leatherwastage

Make post-purchase leatheraftercare part ofyour circularinitiative

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Responsible leather sourcing

The complexities in leather sourcing need weighing up so brandscan respond strategically to its environmental and social challenges.

Sometimes as a last resort, brands have to take a tough stance, as seenin 2019, when big names such as H&M and VFC brands Vans andTimberland suspended hide orders from farms linked to deforestation ofThe Amazon, as Brazil's devastating fires were cited to be caused byintentional land clearing.

Much leather is sourced in areas where raising livestock isculturally significant and an economic necessity. Leather work is animportant cra� in many parts of the world, providing an income to makers,so the setting up of equitable Fairtrade initiatives can break poverty cyclesand support communities in those regions.

The rise in global veganism is driving increased interest in leather-free goods, so the industry needs to counter this and reassure the end-usecustomer by complying to stringent metrics on animal welfare.

How to action this: take full accountability for leather's impacts. Forexample, sneaker brand Veja sources only LWG-certified leather fromBrazilian organic farms where livestock is treated well. Ensure theleather sourced is a food by-product and work with suppliers credited byinitiatives such as LWG's The Animal Welfare Group (AWG) and TextilesExchange's Responsible Leather Round Table.

The Leather Working Group promotes best-business practices and its Animal Welfare Group(AWG) provides education and information on livestock and animal welfare

Leather Working GroupLeather Working Group

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Traceable supply chains

The leather industry is recognising that transparent supply chains are theway forward to verify sustainable leather and is using metrics to measureit. The Leather Working Group (LWG) has formed a Traceability WorkingGroup with the National Wildlife Federation and other parties, aiming tolink traceability to its ratings system.

Who is making progress in traceable leather? Tannery ISA TanTec isexpanding Its LITE (Low Impact to the Environment) Sourcing Programwith Greener Pastures Collection, fully tracing hides back to farms orranches via chain of custody documentation. Leading tannery PrimeAsiaLeather's 2020 Responsibly Raised Program is building out transparentleather value chains, which started off in the US, with plans to move intoBrazil next.

Local set-ups can prove successful. Germany-based Traceable Leatherbuilds and manages certified organic cattle, kid and goatskin supplychains, supplying hides, leather and finished goods (made in a family runmanufactory) to supply nearby brands such as Leit & Held.

How to action this: tracing tools will accelerate progress. Applied DNAhas implemented DNA tagging system CertainT into a leading tannery inChina and on a smaller scale, sustainable luxury brand JosefinLiljeqvist's ethically sourced leather goods can be traced to the origin viaRSID Traceability codes.

Traceable Leather builds up and manages leather supply chains from certi�ed regenerative andorganic farms in Germany, supplying hides, leather and �nished leather goods

Traceable LeatherTraceable Leather

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Regenerative farming

Brands are looking to lower their long-term leather impact by investing infarming practises that raise livestock in a regenerative environment.

Pros and cons: the ancient practise aids biodiversity, protects animals andrestores soil into a carbon sink, potentially helping to get the 30% CO2reduction needed to meet The Paris Agreement 2030 goals set by the UN onClimate Change. However, it still has a long way to go to offer an alternativeto large-scale agriculture and farmers need to acquire knowledge andskills, especially soil management.

Whoʼs leading the way? Timberland aims to source all of its leather fromregenerative supply chains within this decade and already sources fromranches in the US, Australia and Brazil. As Frontier Founder of The SavoryInstitute's Land to Market initiative, it is co-funding the Ecological OutcomeVerification (EOV) process on every Thousand Hills Lifetime Grazed ranchto measure land benefits. In 2020, the first output was thesignature Earthkeepers boot in regenerative leather. Luxury group Keringand Conservation International recently co-launched the RegenerativeFund for Nature, a large investment aiming to turn one million hectares offarmland over to restorative land over the next five years for leather, cotton,wool and cashmere.

How to action this: see regenerative farming as a goal and look atRegenerative Organic Alliance's ROC certification for criteria needed. Timberland launched a collection of boots for autumn 2020 made using leather from veri�ed

regenerative ranches sourced via Savory's Minnesota Hub, Thousand Hills Lifetime Grazed

TimberlandTimberland

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The tanning process

Tanning is coming under scrutiny as consumers become more aware thisprocessing stage relies on hazardous chemicals that can contribute largelyto leather's negative environmental impact.

Chrome tanning is by far the most widely used process, accounting forabout 90% of all leather tanning. It quickly overtook veg tanning in the 19thcentury, accelerated by the development of synthetic dyes, whichtransformed tanning chemistry. Chrome- and metal-based solvents arerelatively cheap and quick to mass produce, but the chemical outputs haveknown toxicity. Aldehyde tanning, o�en used where chrome-free tanning isneeded, also has some toxicity issues.

Vegetable tanning is the earliest form of tanning, using tannins fromnatural plant polyphenols to preserve, strengthen and colour leather andcan be more eco-friendly. Taking up 10% of the leather market, it is popularfor premium accessory brands, luggage and saddlery.

How do they compare on sustainability? Eurofins | BLC LeatherTechnology Centre, who test, audit and provide technical support to theleather supply chain, commissioned life-cycle analysis (LCA) expertEcobilan S.A to audit chrome, aldehyde and veg tanning, which whenmanaged correctly all had unique pros and cons, but chromium was citedthe most environmentally persistent in a product's end-of-life management.

Traditional tannery Wickett & Craig's vegetable tanned leather is much more labour intensive thanchrome tanning, but achieves superior quality, low-impact leather

Wickett & CraigWickett & Craig

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Tanning: chrome- and metal-free

Chrome tanning is dominant, but big industry players are setting upchrome- and metal-free leather targets to meet sustainability criteria.

Chrome tanning pros and cons: it's a relatively cheap and fast processcompared to veg tan, stores and ships well, and achieves even colour indyeing. However, chromium (and other metals) link to toxicity. Cr(III) isarguably safe, but Cr(VI) formed in improper tanning can be harmful totannery workers and a water waste pollutant, so chrome-free and metal-free alternatives are being developed to counter this.

Who's doing FOC (free of chrome) leather? By 2025, H&M aims to makeall animal-based leather chrome-free and Luxury Group Kering isalso aiming for chrome- and-metal-free leather across all brands by2025. It is partnering with Italian tannery Fresco Pelli on Me-Free leather,which uses a decompostable organic chemical to enable the leather to besafely biodegraded and recycles 98% of water used.

Dutch wet-end finisher Smit & Zoon's Nera firm launched Zeology in 2020,an innovative plug and play tanning system that uses renewable mineralZeolite to give leather its white colour. Other chrome-free adopters includetanneries Chiorino Technology and FC Creatio, and brands C&A, ATPAtelier, Veja and Waes.

How to action this: work with tanneries connected to the ChromeFreeLeather Alliance, who advocate and educate on chrome-free tanning.

ATP Atelier's paperbag clutch style, Palombio, uses Me-Free chrome-free nappa leather by Italiantannery Fresco Pelli – a supple, biodegradable alternative to chrome leather

ATP AtelierATP Atelier

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Tanning: vegetable tanning

Vegetable tanned leather is gaining interest, but is still small-scale andpresently accounts for only around 10% of the world's leather. The tanninextracts from bark, berries, roots and leaves colour and preserve the hidesthat are then soaked in tanning liquor over a period of weeks.

Pros and cons: it has its fans, with a unique aroma and rich, attractivepatina that darkens over time via light, moisture and oils. The leather canbe safely biodegraded and makes less harmful waste than chrome tanning.The tanning process is lengthy, uses a big volume of plant tannins per skinand has a high water usage due to the large number of tanning baths,which all adds cost. The colour isn't as consistent as chromed leather, itstains easily and isn't water friendly.

Whos doing it? Examples include Deepmello's Rhubarb Leather, tannedwith rhubarb roots native to the leather processing plant in Germany;and Wet-Green's Cradle to Cradle Gold-certified Olivenleder, tanned witholive leaves, gives the so� feel of nappa with a firm grain. Other producersinclude Wickett & Craig, Ecopell 2000 and Conceria Dingo.

How to action: look for best-practise tanneries from reliable industrygroups, such as Tanners Extract Producers Federation (TEPF) and GenuineItalian Vegetable-Tanned Leather Consortium in Italy.

Deepmello features a collection of rhubarb-tanned skins in undyed and coloured variations,avoiding the use of toxic chemicals in the tanning process

Deepmello LeatherDeepmello Leather

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Tanning: water ef�cient

The leather industry is extremely water-intensive, using it for animalraising, tanning and finishing, and leather also creates a vast volume ofwaste water, sometimes with a heavy pollutant load.

With increased drought and water scarcity an issue, tanneries aremanaging water more efficiently via inflow and effluent measuring,combined processes and on-site water filtration, recycling and reuse.

Who's leading in water-efficient leather? Footwear brand and leathersupplier Ecco launched its innovative DriTan technology in 2018, usingmoisture present in cowhides, which claims to save it over 25 million litres ofwater and cut water waste by 600 tonnes of sludge (for landfill) annually –a final saving of 20 litres of water per hide.

Piloted in its Ecco So� 8 leather sneaker in 2018, DriTan has since then beentaken up by other brands, such as Australian accessories brandBellroy, and is said to compare well to standard leather.

Sustainable sneaker brand Cariuma's leather uppers adhere to strict ISOstandards, with 100% of water in the making reused and treated, with zerochemical waste, gaining LWG's highest gold rating. And Clarks is workingwith ISA TanTec Tannery, who has helped the brand to save over six millionUS gallons of water in its latest ranges.

How to action this: partner with tanneries investing in water-saving,filtering and recycling processing to save precious H20 resources.

Ecco's DriTan water-ef�cient technology, �ve years in the making, saves water and avoids thedischarge of chrome-containing wastewater and the use of chemicals

EccoEcco

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Finishing and proo�ng

Leather is a natural, biodegradable material, so finishes adding colour,texture and functionality should be assessed for overall environmentalimpact as they can hamper the end-product's suitability for safe, end-of-lifebiodegradability or recyclability.

Some polymers, pigments and additives in base, ground and top coats aretoxic, so look for lower-impact, water-based and solvent-free types.

Organic and inorganic pigments are used in dye and coatings.Chemical dyes are even, lightfast and stable vs organic dyes that are lessstable, but more eco-friendly. Synthetic waxes and films that weatherproofleather and protect against creasing, rubbing and fading make it longer-lasting, but can include toxic chemistry. Plant-based waxes work well onveg tan, but are not as durable.

Weigh up chemical impacts with waste savings. Embossing can be used toelevate lower classifications of leather to mitigate wastage, but the appliedfilms can impact onward recyclability.

How to action this: make sure dyes and finishes comply with chemicalstandards, such as Bluesign, Oeko-Tex, Reach and Zero DischargeHazardous Chemicals (ZDHC). ZDHC recently granted members of theLeather Working Group (LWG) free access to its Manufacturing RestrictedSubstances List (MRSL) to support safer chemical use. Colour, texture and protective �nishes can add to leathers' overall impact. Here, Deepmello has

achieved a range of lower-impact colours on veg tan leather

DeepmelloDeepmello

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Zero waste: creating goods from scrap

Leather is being promoted as a naturally recycled material, as buying hidesfrom the meat industry saves them from landfill or incineration.

The volume of by-product hides is huge, with over 24 billion sq-m of leatherproduced annually and around 16% of this ends up as scrap or offcuts.Innovative companies are seeing these remnants as a valuable wastestream, buying them to upcycle into small leather goods. This zero-wasteapproach taps into a new approach to luxury and cra�.

Who is using up remnants: US-based Far From Lost upcycles leatheroffcuts into sustainable leather wallets and card holders, sourcing from oneof the largest belt manufacturers in the US who supplies top luxury brands.In Europe, Burberry teamed with material recyclers Elvis & Kresse in2017 to turn its leather waste into accessories and homeware, using aninnovative interlocking leather construction that can make up any size orshape by piecing the fragments together in many forms.

Anya Hindmarch's unique Patchwork handbags are made from leatheroffcuts laser-cut and assembled into each design, while the deadstockpatchwork boots by Ssōne marry sustainability and design.

How to action this: see how leather offcuts can be creatively upcycled intoattractive, new leather goods with a zero-waste narrative.

Anya Hindmarch's Patchwork Small Postbox Bags are one-of-a-kind handbags, using leather offcutsthat would otherwise have been viewed as waste 

Anya HindmarchAnya Hindmarch

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Zero waste: recycled leather

Supply chain leather scraps can also be made into composite leather, suchas Nike's Flyleather sneakers that use 30% of its own factory waste.

Pros and cons: recycled leather uses scraps destined for landfill orincineration and can be traced back to factories. It's durable, looks andfeels like leather and is cheaper than standard leather. However,the recycling process requires extra energy inputs and synthetic additives inthe composites could hamper onward recycling at end of use.

Who's innovating this? Materials innovator Recyc Leather's material is 60%pre-consumer recycled leather fibres and latex is a market leader. Itswaterproof, durable and scratch-resistant and is used by leather goodsbrands such as Opus Mind and Paperthinks.

Sustainable Composites LLC, a Pennsylvanian start-up, has Enspire Leather,a recycled material that claims to have the look, feel and even smell oftanned hide. Leather scraps are pressed into defect-free 54″ sheet rolls,making the material cost-effective and waste-free.

Sneaker brands are following Nike into recycled leather. OTH's Gravièresneakers and the reworked Royale lace-up by Greats both use factory wasteand recycled textiles.

How to action this: minimise leather waste in your supply chain byturning scraps into new leather. Look for materials certified by the RecycledClaim Standard (RCS) and Global Recycled Standard (GRS).

Recyctex recycles natural leather �bres from traceable pre-consumer leather waste, with 60% ofleather �bres coming from offcuts from industrial glove manufacturers, latex and water

Recyc LeatherRecyc Leather

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Post-purchase repair and refurbishment

According to The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP),extending a product's use by nine months can reduce its CO2 footprint by30%. Leather goods are long-lasting, but furthering this to a�ercare canadd value for customers and bring in additional revenue.

Who's doing it? Department stores are extending into post-purchase,offering bespoke repair for shoes, bags and leather goods. Selfridges,Harrods and Harvey Nichols in the UK have all given floorspace to TheRestory, a leading leather a�ercare atelier. The skilled artisans restoreworn, scratched, torn and stained leather and linings, repair or replacetrims and soles and re-dye to order back at the London atelier. Other UKspecialists include The Leather Repair Company and Bag Spa, and of noteare Evans in Australia and New York's Leather Surgeons.

Some international luxury brands are offering free leather repairs ifpurchases are from authorised stores and within a stipulated time,including Chanel, Celine, Mulberry and Marc Jacobs. Footwear brands areoffering repairs, such as Vivobarefoot's Revivo programme with The BootRepair Company, Camper and Church's.

How to action this: small brands can benefit from joining up to create pre-competitive repair services. Use a�ercare to raise consumer visibility onwaste, foster brand loyalty, open up new revenue streams, create newskilled jobs and lower your overall environmental impact. Selfridges', Harrods' and Harvey Nichols' UK-based department stores have given �oorspace to

leather aftercare atelier The Restory, who repair and refurbish customer leather goods

The RestoryThe Restory

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