French leather council warns of domestic raw material shortage
15/04/2014
A pilot test showed that vaccination tripled the amount of high-quality calfskin, representing 30% of a herd, rather than the current 10%.
The council warned that domestic raw material is becoming scarce and is not yielding enough to meet the rising demand.
Consumption of meat in France was down 5% in 2013 compared with the year before. The slaughter of large bovines, calves, sheep and goats dropped by 5%, 4%, 2% and 5% respectively, and resulted in a sharp increase in the price of raw skins. The first months of 2014 show this trend continuing.
The strong euro has also heavily penalised exports, particularly to the Asian and American markets which make up the largest client base for French leather companies.
Despite the warnings, Paul Batigne, president of the Conseil, is confident for the coming year. “The results from 2013 are globally encouraging for the leather sector,” he said. “They are due to the exceptional expertise of our industries throughout the entire chain, which is what allows them to be an important player in the Made In France movement. In 2014, we need to succeed in maintaining production levels of skins, to avoid the risk of inflation.”
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