Leather Pipeline: seven-point summary of the major issues
15/10/2019
It pointed out that global beef production and consumption is still expanding for now, making more raw material potentially available to tanners for now. However, meat alternative products, either plant-based or lab meat, are “hitting the market” and, if these become price competitive, the report said they will increase their market share.
Therefore, some time in the next decade, beef production is likely to decline and hides will be less widely available. Leather demand is unlikely to match raw material supply for some time, which means alternative uses of hides, such as for gelatine and collagen, will provide packer firms with an attractive alternative.
Leather, in this scenario, is most likely going to become a more exclusive material, with shrinking volumes. At the same time, more investment in manufacturing techniques and technological progress will close the production cost gap between plastic and leather, which might slow the reduction of leather consumption down somewhat.
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