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2025 Leather Declaration: Release of “Leather and Its Importance Assessment”

Xuzhou Hoffen Chemicals Co., Ltd. 2025-11-21 15:35:34

The 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) was held in Belém, Brazil, from November 10 to 21, 2025. Ahead of the conference, the International Council of Tanners (ICT) organized leather industry associations from 25 countries and regions to jointly release the 2025 Leather Declaration — “Leather and the Measure of What Matters.” The China Leather Industry Association responded positively. The declaration aims to correct misconceptions about leather and reaffirm that leather is a renewable, biological material that plays an important role in the circular economy.

The full text of the 2025 Leather Declaration is as follows:

In August 2025, the United Nations again failed to adopt a landmark treaty aimed at ending plastic pollution. Conflicting positions between countries advocating reduced plastic production and those supporting increased plastic recycling have led discussions, ongoing since 2022, into another deadlock. As seen in annual negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, resolving differences and reaching a global consensus on how to best protect the planet and humanity is a significant challenge. A key factor is that negotiating parties often hold opposing views, and the evidence provided to support their positions is likewise presented in conflicting ways. The failure of the “Plastic Treaty,” along with challenges facing the UNFCCC, highlights that debates on sustainability can produce distorted outcomes when facts and data are obscured.

These inaccurate statements and data have also distorted perceptions of leather. Leather is durable, repairable, and one of the oldest materials used by humans, deeply embedded in our cultures. For thousands of years, leather has clothed and protected us. Yet in today’s sustainability discussions, leather is often misunderstood, sometimes maligned, and rarely recognized for its unique qualities: it is a by-product of livestock, renewable, and recyclable. This declaration seeks to correct misconceptions and reaffirm that leather is a renewable biological material with a crucial role in the circular economy.

A common misconception is the belief that livestock is raised solely for hides, which overlooks the fact that leather is produced as a by-product of the meat and dairy industry. This misconception obscures leather’s role in creating value from resources that would otherwise be wasted. Leather is often conflated with industrial livestock’s environmental impacts — deforestation, methane emissions, and water consumption. Reports and headlines have framed leather as a driver of environmental harm, but these conclusions are based on flawed calculations.

Livestock is primarily raised for meat and dairy, with hides representing only a by-product. Economically, hides account for approximately 1.5% of the average total value of an animal. However, current life cycle assessment (LCA) methods often assign an excessive proportion of environmental emissions to hides and leather production. These methodological flaws lead to the mistaken perception that leather has a high environmental cost. In reality, leather is part of a circular system that valorizes hides that would otherwise be discarded. Millions of hides worldwide go unused each year due to reduced leather demand, ending up in landfills or incinerated — a significant waste of durable, repairable material. It is important to note that foregoing leather does not equate to saving a cow; it often means replacing it with fully fossil-fuel-based synthetic materials.

Properly tanned leather is a natural, renewable biological material with exceptional durability. Leather bridges practicality and heritage; a well-crafted leather product can last for decades. Its repairability and biodegradability are unmatched by most other materials. Recognizing leather as a sustainable material does not deny its livestock origins. As long as global demand for meat and dairy exists, hides will continue to be a by-product. The real choice is not between “using” or “not using” leather, but between responsibly utilizing these hides or allowing them to go to waste, relying instead on fossil-based alternatives.

Leather embodies the concept of circular use. It extends the value of existing hide resources, prevents waste, reduces carbon emissions, and provides long-term durability, decreasing overall resource consumption. Unlike synthetic materials, it develops character through aging, repair, and reuse. Unlike plastic, it returns to the earth at the end of its life.

Moreover, leather’s value extends beyond its material properties; it carries cultural significance, craftsmanship, artistry, and a long history of durability. It resists the disposable culture promoted by plastic products. In a world dominated by fast fashion and single-use goods, leather reminds us that quality, functionality, aesthetics, and respect for resources remain viable choices.

Therefore, we call on the United Nations Climate Change Conference to support the following:

Recognize leather’s circular characteristics and climate benefits, and acknowledge its potential to reduce the climate impact of consumer goods. In particular, statements that leather drives deforestation, which lack sufficient evidence, should be subjected to careful and comprehensive impact assessments, with reliable methods developed to evaluate material and product lifespan and their consumption implications, as well as alternatives research.
Support life cycle assessment methods that accurately reflect all materials’ environmental impacts. When comparing by-products and products, these assessments should account for product longevity, use, and substitution consequences.
Promote the principles of reduced consumption, higher circularity, and waste minimization by advancing durable, bio-based materials and products, slow fashion, and goods that are reusable, repairable, refurbishable, and long-lasting.
Where feasible, encourage the use of natural, renewable materials such as leather and reduce reliance on fossil-based materials.

Signatories of the 2025 Leather Declaration:

French Leather Federation (AFC)
American Leather Chemists Association (ALCA)
Portuguese Leather Association (APIC)
Quality Assurance Association of Leather Strap Manufacturers (AQC)
Australian Hides and Leather Exporters Association (ASHLEA)
Brazilian Leather Industry Center (CICB)
Portuguese Leather Technology Center (CTIC)
European Council of the Tanners’ Associations (COTANCE)
Guanajuato Leather Industry Chamber (CICUR)
China Leather Industry Association (CLIA)
French Raw Hide Association (FFCP)
French Footwear Federation (FFTM)
International Council of Skin and Hide Leather Traders Association (ICSHLTA)
International Council of Tanners (ICT)
Is It Leather (IIL)
International Union of Leather Technologists and Chemists Societies (IULTCS)
Leather Hide Council of America (LHCA)
Leather Naturally (LN)
UK Leather Association (LUK)
One4Leather (O4L)
Sustainable Leather Foundation (SLF)
Turkish Leather Industrialists Association (TDSD)
German Leather Federation (VDL)
German Raw Hide and Leather Association (WHL)
Zimbabwe Leather Development Council (ZLDC)

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