All so that their skin can be turned into our jackets, shoes, and purses. Every year, the global leather industry slaughters more than a billion animals. You probably think that leather comes only from cows — but the leather you're wearing might have come from any number or combination of cows, pigs, goats, sheep , alligators , ostriches , kangaroos — and even dogs and cats.
Yes, that's right: while it might not be legal here, an estimated two million cats and dogs are killed for their meat and skin in China every year — and we all know how much of our clothing is made in China. If, like I used to, you thought that cows being used for leather were "being killed for meat anyway," know that it's just not true. The leather industry often calls leather a "by-product" of the meat industry , and has tried to make it seem like the animals would have been slaughtered anyway, almost as though you're helping to waste less of the animal's caracas by buying it.
But many of the animals killed in places like India, China, Brazil and many other countries are killed expressly for their skins. According to a Greenpeace report, Slaughtering the Amazon , leather represented more than a quarter of the value of the Brazilian cattle trade, making leather the most valuable part of the cattle industry, pound for pound.
Because leather doesn't require refrigeration, food safety testing, and has such a high mark-up rate when it's sold as clothing, leather is also the most profitable part of the cow. Leather is not so much a "by-product" of the meat industry as it is a "co-product" that directly contributes to the demand for factory farms and the profitability of slaughterhouses.
Wear leather, and you are supporting the same industry — and you're not "saving waste" in the process. As well as these synthetic materials, vegan leather can also be made from more natural resources, including pineapple leaves, cork, apple peels, and recycled plastic.
Despite the raw materials sounding nothing like what goes into real leather products, vegan leather has come on leaps and bounds over the past few decades, meaning that well-made vegan-leather products can often be mistaken for the real thing.
Sandra Sandor, the creative director of Paris Fashion Week label Nanushka , favours vegan leather for her products, many of which are worn and loved by some of the biggest names in fashion. Nanushka has become a favourite among influencers and fashion editors alike, with many of the label's vegan-leather pieces remaining its most popular styles. The brand is a great example of the potential of using vegan-leather alternatives without compromising on style.
That being said, some designers do see a drawback in the quality of vegan leather for certain products, leading them to use a mix of real and vegan, including London Fashion Week favourite, Rejina Pyo , who uses faux leather for trousers and jackets, but tends to opt for the real thing when it comes to accessories. Part of the reason for this is attached to how the consumers view vegan leather.
Veganism is a commitment to not use any animal-derived material or ingredient, so it makes sense that the term vegan leather is only used by brands who have made the commitment to being per cent vegan. Other brands are also turning to animal alternatives. Although not vegan, luxury fashion designers such as John Galliano, Prada, Christian Dior, and Louis Vuitton have all sourced fish skin from Atlantic Leather for collections in a bid to lessen the pressure of real leathers.
When assessing the sustainability credentials of vegan leather, we need to look at its raw properties and how its made — not all vegan leather is created equal. As we've stated, some vegan leather is made from plant-based materials, while others are created from artificial products.
The inclusion of these artificial products can be where sustainability issues arise. As a result, this plays a major role in climate change, the management of water and biodiversity. The way to fashion credibility is apparently to pile on animal skins the other current favourite is shearling , so you look like an extra from The Revenant. Despite a defiant surge in fur-wearing, it still remains a mainstream taboo. When it comes to leather, honestly, who really thinks about cows?
Pop star Leona Lewis does. Since she came to fame via The X-Factor she has continually spoken up for animal rights. She now fronts a new Peta campaign video, Hell for Leather , which, unsurprisingly, is a grim watch.
Filmmaker Manfred Karremann, a seasoned campaigner, tracks a pathetic caravan of cattle between India and Bangladesh as they are driven along dusty roads for hours and hours, abused and tortured with every mile. Finally the animals are skinned in front of each other in the back streets of Dhaka.
The skins are processed in makeshift tanneries with workers, including children, knee deep in toxic chemicals. Jason Baker established the Indian branch of Peta in He claims this film represents the reality of leather production in much of the region, rather than a horrifying anomaly.
He himself has seen these kind of conditions again and again. We documented workers, including children, performing hazardous tasks such as soaking hides in toxic chemicals and using knives to cut the skins.
Each year some 34m bovines including buffalo are slaughtered, which makes it one of the engines of the global leather trade, attracting millions of dollars. But at the same time in 24 of 29 states cattle slaughter is illegal, as framed by the constitution.
So how can a state such as Rajasthan, which has the only government cow department to look after freely roaming sacred cows, and one of the biggest gaushalas shelters for stray cattle , also be home to hundreds of tanneries?
The system is fraught and suffers from a lack of transparency. The religious overtones of beef consumption are frequently played for political gain. Start penilizing the unsustainable factory farming that destroys everything around it and embrace traditional ways of life that only give back to the environment.
Get thousands of vegan, allergy-friendly recipes in the palm of your hands today! Get your favorite articles delivered right to your inbox! Support OneGreenPlanet X. Subscribe to Newsletter. FoodMonster App. Support Us. Buy our Cookbooks. Sign Our Petitions. Check out our must-buy plant-based cookbooks!
Learn more.
0コメント