Leather

Leather Industry - The Profit Behind Animal Slaughter

Leather is animal skin that has been chemically modified to produce a strong, yet flexible material that resists decay. Almost all of the world leather output originates from slaughtered cattle, goats and kids, sheep and lambs. Other animals that are used for their skin include horse, pig, deer and seal. Exotic animals such as snakes, alligator, crocodiles, and even walruses are also slaughtered for their skin. Other animals can even include ostriches, cats and dogs. In Australia, the kangaroo industry is the world’s primary supplier of kangaroo skins. There is also an increased interest in Australia to supply the hides from emus and camels to overseas markets in Asia.

Leather, just like fur, has a fixed and long history of use by humans. From early hunting man needing protection from the environmental elements by the wearing of skins, as well as the use of dried skins in making of tools, weapons and other much needed items. Today, leather is an all too common material used in such items as fashion clothing and accessories, household furniture items, car interiors and luggage. The use of leather is large and varied. It has become very affordable due to the continual increase of meat consumption in western societies being supplied by intensive factory farming systems and millions of slaughtered animals.

Since there are a variety of skins and the different means of processing, allows leather to be very versatile. Leather can be either soft or very hard depending on the animal skin, tanning process and required use.

Leather (Animal Rights Perspective)

You might be like the vast majority of others and believe that leather is a natural and much needed material. Why not? Due to its long history and varied uses, leather appears to be much needed. It can be found virtually in any home, clothing apparel and accessories, and even in public areas. It can be either cheap or very expensive depending on the type and use.

However, just like all the other forms of industries reliant on using animals for profit and consumer want for cheaper products, there is also hidden cruelty.

The majority of leather comes from cattle sent to slaughter. Leather is just another by-product of the meat industry which believes that virtually every part of the animal has a monetary use. The production of leather in Australia is dependant upon the same forces that drive the meat market. Most leather used in Australia come from cattle and skin from sheep. Leather made from hides and skins of crocodiles, emus, camels, goats and the legs of ostriches are not profitable for the domestic market, with Australia pushing for an export of these leathers to France, Italy, China, Japan and USA. Most leather that is used in the United States come from developing countries such as Pakistan, India or China, where welfare laws are either non-existent nor enforced. In these countries many animals are skinned alive. Also, with such lax manufacturing laws in such countries means that some leather, just like fur, can be mislabeled.

Apart from leather coming from animals slaughtered for human consumption, many animals are also trapped or hunted for their skins, making the leather industry very similar to the fur industry.

The chemical treatment of hides or skin into leather happens almost immediately after the animal is slaughtered. Most cases the first step, known as curing involves the skin being treated at the same slaughterhouse the animal was slaughtered in, before being moved to a tanning factory. Some animals have been known to be still conscious while being dismembered and skinned. As quoted by one slaughterhouse worker:

"A lot of times the skinner finds a cow is still conscious when he slices the side of its head and it starts kicking wildly. If that happens, ... the skinner shoves a knife into the back of its head to cut the spinal cord." (This is to paralyze the animal only and does not stop the animal feeling pain as it is skinned alive) - Slaughterhouse-Gail A. Eisnitz

If you know of factory farm conditions and oppose such treatment, yet still buy leather products, you are still passively supporting those industries. Leather is the most economically important byproduct of the meat-packing industry. If you are also environmentally conscious, the processing of leather results in wastes, pollutants and effluents being disposed into the environment.

Leather as a health issue

People who work in tanneries are exposed to a wide range of chemicals. Some of these are carcinogens or suspected carcinogens, including hexavalent chromium salts, arsenic, and organic solvents (benzene, formaldehyde, butyl acetate, ethanol, acetaacetate, toluene and acetone).

Increased risks for a number of cancers have been reported among tannery workers. Cancers such as lung cancer, testicular cancer, soft tissue sarcoma, pancreatic cancer and bladder cancer have been reported by tannery workers. Also respiratory illnesses caused by breathing in the buffed dust from the tanning process has also been reported.

Hexavalent chromium, which has been linked to cancer, has been increasingly detected in some finished leather products.

There are alternatives

Due to an increased awareness of the various cruelty, environmental and health issues surrounding leather, more people are opting to buy items that are made from natural plant fibres or synthetics. There is now a growing market in synthetic leather , with ‘vegan leather’ becoming more popular and affordable. Vegan materials used as alternatives include vegetan, a micro fiber material created specifically to act as a vegan leather. Other materials also include lorica, PVC and Kydex. It has been found that these materials are superior in strength and durability than leather, which as a pre-chemically processed skin or hide has little strength or durability. To think that leather is a naturally superior material in its natural state is a misconception.

What can you do?

1. Don’t buy common items that are made partly or entirely from leather. Items such as clothes, shoes, clothing accessories, bags, luggage and purses that are commonly made from leather can be substituted for those made from natural plant fibres or synthetics.

Due to more people becoming aware of the hidden side to leather and choosing not to buy leather items, has resulted in an increasingly growing market for synthetic leather. ‘Vegan leather’ is an artificial alternative that has been shown to have properties superior to the treated leather, and looks remarkably like real leather.

Want to know where to buy synthetic leather shoes, purses, belts?