Categoria: Leather

Content posted by: One4Leather.

One 4 Leather recently published an article entitled “Odour and emission reduction in leather tanneries”.

There is a lot to be said for the reduction of chemicals and hazardous substances in production and products. After all, health and safety matters to us, animals, and our planet. However, the natural alternatives we used in the past are not always something we would like to return to, particularly when it comes to leather tanning.

Leather tanneries were located on the outskirts of towns, preferably on the far end so the wind would not carry the smell. Animal hides were originally processed using urine and dog faeces. The urine would help clean the leather, whereas the faeces contain enzymes that helped prepare the collagen in the hide. As this was often done in the open air, the smell of urine, faeces and decaying wastes were carried by the wind. Not particularly enjoyable, but a regular part of city life in the olden days. Up until the Victorian age, it was perfectly normal for the inhabitants of cities to collect dog faeces and urine for the exact purpose of leather making, therefore, the streets were relatively clean.

Modern processing has removed the need for these odorous ingredients. Even vegetable tanning, a method that also used the old technologies, has modernised. However, modern use of chemicals and other agents bring with them a new challenge: to manage the processes and chemistry to minimise any odour.

Modern tanning methods may have gaseous emissions. More often than not, the chemistry of tanning is carefully controlled to prevent any emissions, but where they do arise, the gaseous emissions are controlled using modern technology, such as filtration systems, which capture any emissions and prevent them from going anywhere.

The European Leather Industry reports significant reductions in VOCs in leather production. Greener chemistry and effective (waste)water management have contributed to a reduction of pollutants in the exhausts from tanneries. Tanners have also invested in circular processes where process heat is reused for thermal processes (or green energy, lowering CO₂ and NO₂ Production.

You can read the original article HERE.

Content posted by: Lederpiel.

Lederpiel publishes, this March, a news item entitled “Leather, imitated but not equaled”. It explains that a study has recently been carried out in Europe to assess a total of 9 alternatives to leather of animal origin and that they are promoted as alternatives to it.

Specifically, the elements studied were Desserto (cactus), Kombucha (mushroom), Pinatex (pineapple), Noani (eucalyptus), Appleskin (apple skin), Vegea (grape residue), SnapPap (paper skin), Teak Leaf (teak leaves) and Muskin (mushroom). The samples were analyzed at the independent Research Institute for Leather and Synthetic Materials (FILK) in Freiberg, Germany. The FILK examined the technical properties of these nine leather alternatives, resulting in the Trend Alternatives for Skin Study. The conclusion of this report is clear: none of the substitutes tested exhibited all the intrinsic characteristics of the skin, while some of the substitutes were found to contain chemicals of concern.

For the European employers’ association of tanners, “the result of the study concludes that until today the leather is much superior to its substitutes. It is important that customers and consumers are aware of the deficit in properties of alternative materials.

You can access the original content HERE.

Video posted by: Cotance

The 2nd Social and Environmental Report of the European Leather Industry is an EU-sponsored joint initiative from COTANCE and industriAll-Europe, the Social Partners of the industry. Their aim is to help tanneries position themselves against a European benchmark, measure their progress over time, serve as a communication tool for the public, and as a model for other regions of the world.

In today’s markets, transparency is key and European tanneries have understood this well and taken appropriate action. They strive towards excellence in social and environmental performance.

Judge for yourself the commitment of the men and women of Europe’s tanneries, to sustainability:

Disclaimer:

This video has been funded with support from the European Commission. The sole responsibility for the content of this video lies with the authors. It does not represent the opinion of the EU.

The European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.

Content posted by: Lederpiel

A great way to promote the sustainable use of leather, after its useful life, would be to use it for composting and its subsequent use as fertilizer for plants, once it has been reduced to mineralized organic matter.

This requires the development, in addition to more sustainable and chromium-free leathers, of methodologies and standards that allow a clear and precise assessment of the potential of these materials to be used for composting purposes. Currently there is no procedure or standard to evaluate leather as a possible candidate for composting processing, which does exist, for example, for the plastics sector.

For this reason, the Spanish footwear technology center, Inescop, within the framework of the BIOREQ Project, financed by the Ivace and the Feder Funds, is working on a test methodology that allows establishing the necessary requirements to validate leather as a compostable material.

Consequently, the BIOREQ Project will contribute to promoting the leather sector, facilitating its revaluation at the end of its useful life, also contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), mainly in the Innovative Industry Category (SDG 9) and Responsible Production (SDG 12).

You can read the original information HERE.

Report published by: COTANCE

The Confederation of National Associations of Tanners and Dressers of the European Community (COTANCE) has just published the Social and Environmental Report of the European Leather Industry (SER 2020).

Increasing transparency in tanneries is an ongoing endeavour for all parties in the leather industry. For more than a decade, the social partners have consistently demonstrated that leather-making is good for people, the planet and prosperity. They have communicated to Europe’s citizens that when leather-making is performed responsibly, it fulfils important societal needs.

Europe’s tanneries are not comparable with the dreadful images of irresponsible operators conveyed so often through the internet and social media. On the contrary, they are plants combining craftmanship and art in an industry that exemplifies better than any other the circular economy; an industry that is seeking young people propel it into the future.

The striving of Europe’s leather sector towards excellence in social and environmental performance has, with the support of the European Commission, been realised in a series of joint projects.

This SER 2020 allows you to judge for yourself the commitment of the men and women of Europe’s tanneries, to sustainability.

The document can be downloaded in several languages HERE.