Leather vs Faux Leather: pros and cons

Leather is one of the most controversial fabrics in fashion.

Animal welfare was one of the first aspects of sustainability to gain a lot of attention. And since it became general knowledge that cows and beef are big contributors to our joint Green House Gas emissions, the attention has only grown.

Many consumers and brands have decided to put a ban on leather and exclude it from their closets and collections. But what are the alternatives for leather?

And are they any better?

In this article we provide a review of pros and cons of leather and some of the faux leathers.

Leather

Leather most commonly comes from cows, goats or sheep. It is animal skin which has been either chemically tanned or subjected to vegetable tanning. The selected method influences the environmental impact of the product, as the substances used for chemical tanning can have detrimental effect on underwater life as well as on human health.

Pros and cons of leather

Pros

·      The skin can be a waste product from the food industry

·      It is a very durable material

·      Lower impact in the use-phase, as it requires no washing

 

Cons

·      Difficult to ensure animal welfare, because of the lack of transparency

·      The working conditions at and near the tanneries are often criticized because of the exposure to hazardous chemicals

·      The hazardous chemicals pose a threat to the environment

·      The methane gas from the cows releases CO2

·      Needs a lot of land for the animal to grass

Can leather be more sustainable?

As with majority of materials, leather can be produced in a less or more environmentally friendly manner. Membership organization as well as innovative transparency options have emerged within the leather industry, which help brands make responsible decision regarding use of resources, limiting emissions during the production process, quality of the final product as well as its end-of-life.

Some of the available options are:

Leather Working Group

LWG works to improve and assess the working conditions at the tanneries in the leather industry. It requires a membership, but comes with branding tools. 

SPOOR

A Danish organization that works for traceability and sustainability in leather. With scannable QR codes, they provide transparency all the way back to the farm. 

Faux Leather

Faux leather includes all man-made materials which are intended as substitutes for leather of animal origin. Faux leather can also be referred to as artificial leather or vegan leather. This group includes both synthetic fabrics such as PU leather and plant-based leathers.

PU Leather

PU (polyurethane) is often used as faux leather and has the most visual resemblance to real leather. Some types of PU leather are made from actual leftover leather, but with a PU coating on top of it.

Pros and cons of PU faux leather

Pros

·      From an environmental perspective, there are none. PU is a product of the fossil fuel industry. It requires use of hazardous chemical substances in production, sheds microplastic and after its lifespan it might release toxic chemicals on the landfill.

Cons

·      Not breathable like leather

·      Does not last as long as real leather, as it can crack

·      Does not decompose

·      Made from non-renewable sources

·      Bad working conditions for workers

Plant-based faux leathers

Plant-based leather is a relatively new substitute for real leather. However, there have already emerged many plant based faux leathers types: made from mushroom, oranges, pineapples, cacti, apples and much more. However, it is important to note, that plant-based faux leathers often contain polyurethane or are coated with petroleum-based resin.

Pros and cons of plant-based faux leathers

Pros:

·       Partially biodegradable

·       Partially made of renewable resources

·       Recyclable

·       Lower carbon impact than traditional leather and synthetic leather

Cons:

·       Currently the costs of producing plant-based leather are quite elevated

Here are some plant-based faux leathers which might be an option for a fashion or lifestyle brand:

MyloTM

Mylo™ is a vegan faux leather from the company Bolt Threads. Mylo™ is made from mycelium — the complex latticework of underground fibers from mushrooms.

Piñatex

Piñatex is a plant-based faux leather made from pineapple leaf fibres. The leaves often ended up discarded, as a byproduct from the pineapple fruit.

Desserto

Desserto is a vegan faux leather produced from prickly pear cactus (also called Nopal cactus), which grows abundantly is Mexico. The mature leaves are cut from the plant and dried in the sun. The plantation is organic and perennial, and the remaining cactus material is sold to food industry.

 

In general, more and more plant-based options for leather are on the rise. The field is still new, so we recommend you thoroughly research the material before betting on it completely.

 

Want to learn more about the pros and cons of different materials? Buy a copy of our material guide.

In the guide, you can learn about the production process as well as pros and cons for more than 50 materials.

All materials in the guide are rated as bad, poor, fair or good in relation to water, chemical, social issues, environmental issues, animal welfare, price and availability. 

This is to make it easier for you to quickly understand how good or bad a material you're dealing with.

And perhaps develop a list of your preferred materials?