Vegan Leather

Conventional Vegan Leather

Avoid conventional leather involves toxic dyes, glues, and polluting materials. They are made with toxic tanning process and synthetic materials or other petroleum-derived materials. 

 

❌ Toxic leather: conventional leather tanning may contain chromium, arsenic, and other chemicals that pollute the environment and water supplies.

❌ Chrome Tanned Leather: 90% of leather is chrome tanned. Chrome tanning is a widely used method in the leather industry, involving the treatment of animal hides with chromium salts, primarily chromium(III) sulfate. Toxic wastewater from tanneries can contaminate local ecosystems. It can lead to toxic chromium (VI) formation, which is harmful to humans and the environment.

❌ PFAS: they contain toxic PFAS that are not only harmful to you but also to the environment. They are found especially in waterproof footwear  

​Greenwashing Vegan Leather

Avoid Greenwashing vegan leather is made by brands that pretend to be sustainable, eco-friendly, and claim to be made with safer materials when they are not. They will use misleading marketing claims to convince you to buy their products. 

Many came with vegan leather alternatives, bringing more plastic to the world:

 

❌ PVC: Most vegan leathers today are made from PVC, made with petroleum. PVC is, for this reason, harmful to the environment. 

❌ PU is another synthetic vegan or faux leather. By definition, PU stands for Polyurethane, a plastic polymer derived from petroleum. Even less than PVC, PU still requires petroleum. .  

Sustainable Vegan Leather

The best vegan leather is made with natural and sustainable materials

✅ Here is the most eco-friendly vegan leather on the market, made with renewable resources and also by-products, that is made with plant-based material that would have been wasted. 

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  • 🍍Piñatex (Pineapple leather): made with leaf fiber leather Piñatex®inatex Organic material, made from pineapple leaves that result from the waste of the pineapple harvest. The fibres that are not used in Piñatex are distributed as fertilizer.
  • 🍏 Apple leather: also known as AppleSkin, is a bio-based material made using the leftover pomace and peel from the fruit juice and compote industry. The fabric is created by first taking the recovered apple waste and reducing it to a powder. The apple leather used in our products is made using 50% apple waste mixed with 50% PU, coated onto a cotton/polyester canvas. Ecological, breathable, waterproof, and durable fabric has been a game-changer in the industry. Apple Leather
  • 🌵 Cactus Leather: DESSERTO USDA-certified cactus is grown in an organic farming system in the fertile and mineral-rich region of Zacatecas, Mexico. Cactus naturally regenerate the soil. It takes approximately only 3 leaves of cactus to create one linear meter of Desserto.
  • 🥭 Mango leather:  Fruit Leather created by Koen Meerkerk and Hugo de Boon, crafted from natural mangos 
  • 🍄 Mushroom leather: Mylo
  • 🌳 Cork: one of Portugal’s most treasured sustainable materials. This process is mindful of the trees with a goal of sustainable production every 9 years for a 150-year lifespan. Animal-free and plastic-free, each product is handcrafted in small batches by skilled Portuguese artisans.
  • 🌿 Chrome-free vegetable-dyed leather: manufactured without chromium during the tanning process, and there are no harmful chemicals. It has a higher production cost.

 

Certifications 

  • ✅ USDA Certified Biobased: This certification ensures that the brands are reducing their reliance on petroleum, increasing their use of renewable agricultural resources, and contributing to reducing adverse environmental impacts.
  • ✅ PETA-approved vegan. This certification ensures that we are reducing reliance on petroleum, increasing the use of renewable agricultural resources, and contributing to reducing adverse environmental impacts.
  • ✅ Recycled materials: 100% of this sneaker’s lining is recycled polyester. It also has a sole made with recycled rubber.
  • ✅ ReCORK: Recycled Cork replaces this foam with a totally sustainable alternative that is more comfortable, cushioning, light, durable, and, of course, way safer, sustainable, and eco-friendly.
  • ✅ Certified non-toxic leather: tested to be chromium-free; naturally tanned with vegetable tanning. Certified by The Leather Working Group (LWG): transparency in the leather supply chain, saving energy, water, worker health and safety, safe chemical practices, and wastewater management. 

​The Best Organic Vegan Leather Brands

 

Shop with my links to support my research! 💖 

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Nae Shoes Logo

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SteamLine Luggage organic, sustainable, non-toxic, PFAS-free luggage

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