Innovative materials in alternative to leather are booming. Yet, for the leather industry stakeholders as well as for consumers, the topic is a burning issue.
If arguments against cattle farming and leather have been exposed many times, the real benefits and performances of its so-called “vegan” alternatives have rarely been assessed.
For this, several points need to be taken into account.
Obviously, the origin and nature of the (innovative) material, sometimes quite unexpected, put forward (plastic, vegetable, from biomass, co-product of the food industry, etc.) are key points to consider. As well as the final composition of the new product (pure material innovation or mixture with other more conventional materials).
The study conducted by FILK and commissioned by the leather industry provides factual information on another fundamental point: technical performance.
For it is clear that the adoption of these alternatives by brands will depend largely on this.
