Vegan skin and fashion

When we talk about vegan lifestyle as a project and philosophy of life, we are not simply referring to a specific food diet to follow, but also to the content of the wardrobe. 

The phenomenon of vegan fashion seems to have boomed especially in the last year, in which, according to data collected by Lyst, there would have been a 69% increase in searches related to "vegan skin" in April 2020 alone. The global vegan market is undoubtedly a sector on the rise, with handbags alone estimated to grow by 49.9 percent through 2025. 

Regardless, a great deal of confusion still reigns about this movement. In particular, there is little clarity regarding the distinction between eco-friendly and vegan fashion. 

Let us start, then, with one certainty: any animal-derived garment or accessory is definitely not vegan. Vegan, however, while it is a guarantee of the absence of animal involvement in production, it is not necessarily synonymous with environmentally sustainable. 

In fact, although many items are labeled as vegan, they often fail to meet some basic parameters: for example, if they are made from synthetic materials, which are themselves derived from fossil fuels and difficult to dispose of, they will take too long to decompose, thus ending up polluting the oceans. 

Difference between leather, faux leather, vegetable-tanned leather and imitation leather

In spoken language, we tend to use terms such as leather, faux leather, imitation leather and vegetable-tanned leather indiscriminately. Let's try to clarify.

Leather is animal skin tanned through the use of chemicals, which are necessary to interrupt the natural decomposition of organic material and make it suitable for use. 

The result of such processing is called leather: soft and extremely durable; it promotes perspiration, warding off the formation of mold and mildew; it boasts thermal insulating properties and is a good electrical conductor. Precisely because of its properties and durability, it is a very expensive material.

Vegetable-tanned leather is always leather of animal origin but, unlike the former, it is generally recycled products from the food industry such as cow, sheep or goat skins. Such materials always undergo tanning, a process that can stop their decomposition, but through the use of tanning agents derived from plant sources, called tannins. 

As for alternatives to animal leather, there is first and foremost faux leather, the term for which is often misleadingly used. The only possible faux leather is that which is tanned according to codified quality standards. 

Leather treated in this way has a fairly high price, which is also justified by the use of natural techniques with low environmental impact. This is the reason for its limited availability, since not all tanneries are economically able to produce it. 

In addition, faux leather requires constant maintenance and should not be exposed to light for its appearance to remain unaltered.It is distinguished by its uneven color, imperfections, extreme softness and long life. 

Finally, imitation leather (or faux leather), mistakenly used as a synonym for faux leather, refers to a material that is aesthetically similar to leather but has different properties: it is a plastic and resinous industrial product on which the roughness typical of real leather is imprinted using special machinery. 

Compared to the latter and to faux leather itself, its price is significantly cheaper. Moreover, because of its water repellency and resistance to light and heat sources, it is easier to provide for its cleaning and maintenance. On the other hand, it is a non-breathable fabric that is not very soft to the touch and tends to flake with wear and tear. 

Resistance of alternatives to leather 

A study conducted by the independent research institute FILK (Forschungsinstitut für Leder und Kunststoffbahnen), shared on the scientific platform MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing), analyzed samples of a range of materials, currently defined in the media as alternatives to leather, with the aim of verifying their technical properties. 

The result was a paper, titled "Trend Alternatives for Leather," which came to the following conclusions: the materials analyzed did not express all the performance characteristics of leather, starting with breaking and tearing resistance. Tests related to water vapor absorption and relative permeability also scored significantly lower than leather. This is an important element if the product is to be used not only for one season but over time.

Alternative (sustainable?) materials to leather

A real revolution in the world of sustainable fashion is coming from various brands, both Italian and international, that are exploiting innovative materials, some of them created from waste products, but not always as sustainable as one would expect.

As studies have shown, although it is possible to obtain a material that is recyclable as well as biodegradable and even compostable, most of the alternative materials to plant-based leather examined fall into neither the first nor the second category.

These include Mexico's Desserto, which as an alternative to animal skin exploits a hardy resource that is widespread in Central America: the cactus. 

The leather resulting from the processing is particularly soft to the touch, has a unique odor, and is as breathable as that of animal origin. In terms of the composition of the material, however, it is important to note that it is mainly polyurethane and not a biopolymer of plant origin. Therefore, the material is not biodegradable. 

Non-biodegradability is also a characteristic of fungal leather used by some luxury brands such as cellulose or other polysaccharides. 

Other textile alternatives have been equally the subject of criticism, such as those of Piñatex, made from the fibers of the flexible and resilient leaves of pineapples, and those of Vegea, made from wine processing waste.

Such materials are made by blending non-degradable binders and coatings to somewhat mimic the performance of leather. It should be noted, however, that pursuing this approach has the advantage of reducing the carbon footprint due to replacing some of the weight of plastic found in conventional polyurethane-based "vegan" options with a bio-based base. 

Desserto's Early Life Cycle Assessment (which, it should be specified, is only a preliminary analysis) shows the potential environmental advantages of its solution over animal hides (in order to properly evaluate the estimates made, it would be necessary to know the underlying assumptions).

Benefits and challenges of alternatives to leather

Growing ethical and environmental concerns have caused many brands to forgo fur and exotic animal skins. According to experts, the next material on the list could be cowhide for several reasons: cattle farming is responsible for 14.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions each year, not to mention the impact caused by the tanning process. 

There are two complementary ways forward: on the one hand, reducing the environmental impact of leather as much as possible, and on the other hand, continuing innovation related to alternative materials to maximize quality performance and minimize environmental impact.

Leather Working Group is an entity working in the first direction: it has developed a protocol to assess leather traceability and tannery sustainability. 

Sneaker brand VEJA, on the other hand, which has been measuring its carbon footprint since 2019 with the aim of having a positive impact at every stage of production, has decided to reduce its use of leather because of the impact due to livestock farming.

What is the most sustainable solution?

It now seems clear that there is growing interest not only in faux leather but also in alternative materials.

As we have seen, in both cases it is important to continue the path of research and innovation.

Some companies are taking a different approach, engaging in circular economy projects, recovering products and giving them a new life from not only innovative materials but also from the leather itself.

These include Elvis & Kresse, (featured on the Cikis Podcast), which specializes in transforming luxury product waste through a purely mechanical process and in factories that use renewable energy, which has signed a partnership with Burberry. Half of the proceeds also go to the implementation of recycling, craftsmanship and environmental protection techniques. 

Ultimately, there is no absolute best alternative. In addition to trying to recycle as much as possible, our advice is to check, for leather, the traceability and tanning process, and for plant-based alternatives the actual composition including binders and fixatives and the ability to last.