Leather has always played a major role in the fashion industry. However, its production process has been subject to environmental and social criticism related to animal welfare and water pollution, despite how the process has evolved over the years. We explore the new front of lab-grown leather to answer the question of whether this product can actually reduce the harmful environmental impact of leather production.
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During industrialization, the switch from using natural tannins to chromium salt cut the time for tanning—the process of treating hides and skins of animals to produce leather—from months to days. Startup companies have now developed new technologies to grow skin in laboratories. Lab-grown skin appears to be a solution to the aforementioned environmental and social concerns. But how is this biofabricated material produced and how does it differ from conventionally produced leather?
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How is traditional leather produced?
Converting raw animal hides into leather is not an easy task. It starts with slaughtering animals – mainly cows – to obtain fresh raw hides, which are then salted for dehydration to prevent rotting during transport from the slaughterhouse. The salted hides then go through a series of chemical and enzymatic “baths,” fleshing, cutting and shaving—a process also known as tanning. After tanning, the finished leather can be further processed into a wide range of products such as shoes, sofa upholstery and clothing to name a few.
Tanning is a chemical and extremely water intensive process. or survey life cycle assessment of bovine leather production of two product systems in Spain and Italy determined the environmental impact induced by the entire leather production process. Despite the differences in the assessment of the two different product systems, their total environmental burdens appeared quite similar. The research found that tanning contributes between 70% to 90% to pollution from energy consumption modes, abiotic resource depletion potential, photochemical oxidant generation potential (POCP) and fresh aquatic ecotoxicity potential.
Effluent from tannery plants contains a complex mixture of harmful organic and inorganic chemicals such as chromium salt, acids and bases, fatty drinks as well as organic tannins. Improperly managed effluent can cause a significant environmental impact on human populations and surrounding living organisms.
How is lab-grown skin produced?
Leather is known for its comfort and durable properties. Although there are many alternative materials for leather, it still holds a unique position in the market, especially in luxury products. Unlike artificial or synthetic leather, this bio-fabricated leather retains the texture and even the smell of real leather from a cow.
The sources of raw materials and technologies for the synthesis of leather are very different. For example, a company is working in animal farming stem cells in the lab to produce actual animal skin. The process begins with collecting skin cells from a living animal and transporting them to the specialized bioreactor. Here, cells reproduce to produce skin. The whole process takes about two weeks to complete, significantly less than the time required to produce conventional leather, which can take years if we consider the time required to raise the animals.
or London based company has also developed innovative systems to produce animal-free leather. They use microorganisms, terrestrial and marine bacteria, or species of fungi to produce bio-fabricated materials that mimic the textures of skin. These microorganisms feed on a variety of materials such as plant-based proteins, agricultural and forestry by-products, sawdust, proteins from fish waste, or even air and greenhouse gases. Given that the composition of bio-fabricated materials is less complex than actual rawhide (a combination of fats and hair, etc.), this helps simplify the tanning process to reduce material use and environmental impact from chemical extraction .
Another company also demonstrated its consideration of the product life cycle by conducting a Cradle to Gate Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in her bio-fabricated skin. The manufacturing process shows significant improvement in greenhouse gas emissions, land use changes, blue water consumption and eutrophication compared to the conventional chrome tanned leather process.
These bio-fabricated materials received increased attention from various industries including footwear, automobiles and luxury brands. Some of them collaborate with brands to commercialize the material for the production of new products, from sneakers produced by mycelium AND yoga mats to mushroom and cactus car seatsand some are even funded to build pilot or commercial production plants.
Is lab-grown skin the answer?
Lab-grown leather helps improve the tanning process and reduce material consumption during leather production. Perhaps it could be an alternative to traditional leather in the consumer goods industry, especially to the growing market for vegan or animal-free products. However, these newly invented materials must consider the life cycle of the product and be aware of the environmental impact caused by their production process, product use, as well as the end-of-life phase.
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