Skinned for Fashion: Leather’s Impact on Animals, Humans, and the Environment

Leather—defined as any animal skin that is chemically treated to preserve it—is among the most ubiquitous of animal
products. From shoes, jackets, dresses, and hats to belts, gloves, watchbands, and even underwear, leather is
considered both a clothing staple and a fashion accessory. It’s also used to make wallets, purses, bags, and sports
equipment as well as car interiors, luggage, furniture, and briefcases. Airlines tout leather seats in their
marketing, while leather-bound books are sold as special editions. Meanwhile, from dog collars and leashes to horse
saddles and reins, leather is affixed to animals we love—while it can be used to whip and beat others.

Most leather—an estimated 67 percent—comes from bovine animals such as cows and buffaloes,[1] but many other animals
are also used for leather, including sheeps, kangaroos, alligators, goats, elks, deers, and horses. There are even
leather products made from sharks, stingrays, snakes, elephants, and ostriches. For every animal with skin,
someone’s invented a use for it.

The leather industry tries to convince consumers that their products do not “directly” promote animal cruelty. One
way they do this is by propagating the myth that leather is not inherently cruel because it is a “byproduct”
of the “meat” industry.[2] The people and companies behind leather want these consumers to believe that there their
purchases did not support animal cruelty—that the products they buy come from materials that would otherwise go to
waste—and they have a lot they want to protect: The global leather good market, currently valued at about USD 470
billion,[3] is expected to reach USD 538.23 billion by 2033.[4] In reality, leather sales can account for as much as
26 percent of worldwide slaughterhouse sales, making it a highly profitable co-product, not a byproduct.[5]
In the words of Collective Fashion Justice, a nonprofit that investigates and fights injustice in the fashion
industry, “leather sales effectively subsidize beef production.”[6]

The Impact on Animals 

When asked how leather is made, leather manufacturers will answer that the process begins with preserving the
animal’s skin, thus ignoring that the animal was first killed, and their skin was peeled from their body. It’s a
horrific image, yet it’s the initial step in the long and tragic road from living being to finished leather product.

Cows used for leather were first bred and raised for their flesh or milk. They have endured a short life of pain and
privation—in which they are separated from their families, suffer such unanesthetized mutilations of their bodies as
castration and dehorning, and are denied many of their natural instincts—before they are trucked long distances to a
slaughterhouse, where they are supposedly stunned senseless, although many remain conscious. They are then suspended
upside down and have their throats slit, kicking frantically in a vain attempt to save themselves as they bleed to
death.[7] 

Many of these animals are skinned alive, despite “humane slaughter” methods.[8] Sheeps, pigs, horses, and other
mammals suffer the same tragic fate as cows, skinned before they are eviscerated.[9]

Australia’s kangaroos are among the animals who are hunted for their skin and flesh. Indeed, the
practice is now regarded as the world’s largest commercial killing of land-based wildlife, claiming the lives of
approximately 1.6 million adult kangaroos every year and hundreds of thousands of baby kangaroos, called joeys.[10]
The number of joeys killed is only an estimate, as the Australian government does not require these babies to be
counted in the commercial kangaroo-killing industry; after shooting the mother, the hunter pulls the joey from her
pouch and swings her or him against a hard surface or is simply left to die.[11]

The kangaroo hunts, which are only allowed to target a few of the 60 species of kangaroos and wallabies, are carried
out at night in the vast Australian outback, away from public scrutiny,[12] and this has resulted in other species
being killed. Among those who have successfully challenged the kangaroo-killing industry is Food Empowerment Project
founder lauren Ornelas, who campaigned relentlessly and helped get Adidas to stop using kangaroo skins (also called
“K-leather”) in some of its soccer shoes.[13]

Other “wild” animals routinely hunted and/or trafficked for leather include lizards, pythons, and alligators, as well
as many species threatened with extinction, such as Nile crocodiles, broad-snouted caimans, saiga antelopes, and
Siamese crocodiles.[14] Even African[15] and Asian[16] elephants, both endangered, have been victims of the leather
trade.

While we haven’t the room to explore every animal exploited for leather, the skin of goats is notable for being found
in so many places, from rugs, drumheads, and book bindings to gloves, shoes, and belts, where kidskin is commonly
used. Kidskin comes from baby goats, and they are slaughtered at just 3 to 5 months of age.[17] Whether the goat is
a baby or an adult, they are stunned (often not successfully) and strung up by a leg before their throat is cut.
Throughout this ordeal, a European Food Safety Authority panel found that goats experience pain, fear, and
distress.[18]

Once the cow, kangaroo, goat, or other animal has been killed and skinned, their skins are shipped to a tanning
facility, where remnants of the animal, such as hair and fat, are removed. Tanning is an ancient practice that has
used a wide variety of agents—including plant materials, smoke, bone marrow, and ammonia—that alter the protein
structure of the skin fibers to soften and stabilize them.[19] Because animal skin will either harden or rot if left
untreated, it must be tanned before it can be turned into leather products.

Today
tanneries commonly use chromium. Chrome tanning was developed independently in the mid-19th century by a German
scientist named Friedrich Knapp, a Swedish scientist named Hylten Cavalin, and a French scientist named Rene de
Kercado Molac, but it was first patented in the United States in 1884 by Augustus Schultz, who created a two-bath
process, and in 1893 by Martin Dennis, who invented a commercially viable one-bath process.[20] Because tanning
leather with herbs and leaves can take up to 45 days, while chrome tanning with chemicals, acids, and salts can be
accomplished in less than three, chrome tanning now represents an estimated 85 percent of the tanning industry
worldwide.[21]

The Impact on Humans  

Halting the decay of animal skins and turning them into a usable material is a perilous business. According to the
International Labor Organization, the humans who perform this work are routinely exposed to biological and chemical
hazards that can cause dermatitis, respiratory problems, and even long-term chronic conditions such as cancer;
meanwhile, physical and ergonomic hazards include cuts, burns, and musculoskeletal disorders.[22] Sadly, an
estimated 90 percent of tannery workers die before 50 years of age.[23]

Chromium salts, the central ingredient in chrome-tanned leather, is the cause of most of this illness. Yet because
chrome tanning is so much faster than using herbs, manufacturers ignore the dangers of chromium.  

Moreover, investigations have found the leather industry using child labor. In Bangladesh, for
example, the second-largest leather-exporting country, children as young as eight were found working in hazardous
conditions, including manually dyeing leather using harmful chemicals, working in extreme heat, carrying heavy
loads, and operating cutting tools and heavy machinery without safety measures.[24] The Fair Labor Association also
identifies India, Mexico, Pakistan, and Vietnam as countries where children work to produce leather.[25]

Journalists, too, have documented the health hazards facing those who work in or live near
tanneries. Sean Gallagher won a Pulitzer Prize for his investigations into how the tanneries in Kanpur, India,
affect not just the workers but the city’s residents, who suffer from tuberculosis, blindness, gastrointestinal
issues, and discoloring of the skin. Children, meanwhile, are born with severe mental and physical disabilities.[26]

Many tannery workers are employed without formal contracts, thus making it difficult for them to claim their rights
and benefits, including the right to freedom of association and to collective bargaining.[27]

The Impact on the Environment

With all the water and chemicals used in the production of leather, it’s no surprise that it
places a heavy burden on the environment. Skins must be washed and cleaned of flesh, pickled, and soaked in a
solution that includes chromium and dyes mixed with water.[28] Producing a single standard tote bag made from cow
skin requires some 4,524 gallons (17,127) liters of water—an amount equal to what a human is recommended to drink
every day for more than 23 years.[29] And that doesn’t consider all the water used in slaughterhouses to kill the
cows used by the leather industry, which by one estimate is 128 gallons (484 liters) per cow.[30]

Leather also occupies a sizable carbon footprint. One study found that 1 square meter of cow-derived leather can
generate up to 110 kilograms (kgs) of CO₂ equivalent emissions (emissions of various gasses translated to the common
unit of carbon), making it nearly 7 times more climate impactful than synthetic leather by the square meter.[31] In
other words, that leather tote bag mentioned earlier would generate 100.5 kg of CO₂e, while a synthetic leather tote
bag would generate just 14.4 kg of CO₂e.[32]

But perhaps
the biggest harm to the environment comes from all the leftover chromium and other hazardous compounds that are
dumped into rivers and streams. Chromium is a heavy metal that varies in toxicity and, when tannery effluents are
discharged into surface waters, contaminates soils, food sources, and drinking water, posing risks to ecosystems,
wildlife, and human health.[33] This is especially common in countries without robust environmental protection
standards, such as Bangladesh, China, and India, which are also major centers of leather tanning.[34] A toxic stew
of chromium, arsenic, sulfuric acid, sodium chlorate, formaldehyde, and other substances poisons the land and air
surrounding tanneries, impacting communities, farms, and everything—and everyone—it touches.[35]

Animal-derived leather is land intensive as well. According to one analysis, the raising of cows to produce 1 kg of
leather requires an average of 97 square meters of land, yet the same volume of mycelium leather alternative
material can be grown vertically, requiring less than 1 square meter of land. Indeed, all leather alternatives have
a significantly reduced land footprint compared to cow skin and most other leather from animals.[36]

The Future of Leather

Although the leather industry remains a major retail force, it has been slowing down for years, in part due to the
shopping habits of younger consumers, who prefer synthetic leather and other materials that do not involve animal
cruelty.[37] They are also thrifting, putting an emphasis on recycling, reducing, and reusing. These could be among
the reasons that the price for cow skin in the U.S. has been declining since 2014 and has yet to recover to what it
once was.[38] Australia has felt the pinch, too: one “meat” company there noted that the recent drop in demand for
cow skins has had a significant impact on their bottom line since they export these skins to Asia and Italy.[39] And
fashion houses such as LVMH[40] and Gucci[41] have reported sagging sales in leather goods.

Meanwhile, demand for microfiber synthetic leather in the U.S. is expected to grow from USD 1.3 billion in 2025 to
USD 2.0 billion by 2035[42]—still a fraction of the market for animal-based leather, but a significant increase
driven by consumer awareness of animal welfare and environmental issues.[43]

Consumers are also turning to recycled plastics, hemp, and organic cotton.[44] “Clothing brands are trying to get in
line with a more ecologically conscious, younger buyer,” says Helen Palmer, director of materials at trend
forecaster WGSN.[45] The global outlook for vegan leather is especially bright: the market is expected to grow from
its 2024 value of USD 80.39 billion to USD 219.2 billion by 2035.[46] Even major brands like Adidas and Nike are
using vegan leather to make their products.[47] This is noteworthy as both companies had been using kangaroo skin to
manufacture their shoes. After years of protesting by animal advocates such as lauren Ornelas, Adidas stopped buying
kangaroo skins in 2024,[48] while Nike and Puma, another leading brand, halted their use in 2023.[49]

Recommendations

As an ethical vegan organization, Food Empowerment Project encourages consumers to avoid all
products made from animals, including leather. Fortunately, leather is a nonessential luxury item—and one with an
ever-expanding list of vegan alternatives to choose from.

The question many new vegans face is what to do about all the shoes, belts, bags, and other leather products they’ve
collected over the years. Some choose to donate or even resell them; however, doing so implies that these items are
fashionable and will be appreciated by others. On the other hand, some new vegans prefer to wear leather items such
as shoes, boots, and sandals until they’re worn out, which might be viewed as hypocritical. Other people bury the
leather, compost it, or simply throw it away, yet chemicals in the leather could make this choice harmful to the
environment.

We understand that this may be a difficult decision, but if wearing the skins of animals no longer aligns with your
values, we feel that donating your leather goods to a charity shop is the least-problematic alternative.

We should note that some leather alternatives are made from vinyl or polyvinyl chloride (PVC),
which are chemically produced materials that use significant amounts of fossil fuels and energy to manufacture. Even
creating the popular synthetic product called PU (polyurethane) leather requires petroleum. That said, a 2017 study
by Global Fashion Agenda found that synthetic leather has only one-third of the environmental impact of cow-derived
leather—especially relative to water scarcity, global warming, and eutrophication (nutrients accumulating in bodies
of water, leading to a depletion of oxygen in the water and the deaths of animals living there).[50]

Still, it’s better to consider clothing, shoes, and accessories made from hemp, jute, bamboo, cork, or other natural
fabrics.