How Environmentally Friendly Is Leather? Its Footprint from Farm to Landfill

Leather is not green or harmful by default. Its footprint depends on three things: how much of the farm's burden is assigned to the hide, how the tannery handles water and chromium, and how heavily the leather is finished. In lab tests it biodegrades far better than plastic-based leather, but comparisons of production impact point the other way.

So "environmentally friendly leather" is a claim to check, not a fact to accept. US and EU rules both push sellers to narrow it.

This page is part of our guide to leather sourcing and sustainability.

The short answer, stage by stage

In US units, 35 to 40 liters per kilogram is about 4.2 to 4.8 gallons per pound of raw hide (our conversion).

Farm: how much of the cow's footprint belongs to the hide?

Leather is made from animal hide or skin, and almost all of it comes from animals raised for meat. Textile Exchange, a non-profit, links leather to land use, methane from cattle, water use and deforestation.

The real question is how to split those impacts between meat and hide. A 2025 analysis argues that hides should carry part of the farm-to-slaughter emissions as a co-product. It found that splitting by economic value gives hides a much smaller share than splitting by weight. That analysis is a preprint, not yet peer-reviewed, so treat it as one view.

The value share itself is argued over. Europe's tanners, an industry body, say raw hides are about 1.5% of a cow's value at the abattoir. The FAO calls hides mainly a by-product of meat. Veganuary, an advocacy group, says leather is a profitable trade in its own right. The animal side of that debate is covered in is leather ethical.

Deforestation is where certification reaches least. Greenpeace, an advocacy group, says cattle pasture caused 42% of agriculture-driven deforestation from 2001 to 2022. The Leather Working Group's audit stops at the slaughterhouse and does not assess farms. Its deforestation-free target for 2030 is a goal, not yet part of the standard.

EU rules are unsettled too. The European Commission's page still lists leather under its deforestation regulation. Europe's tanners say a July 2026 act removed it. Check the current EU text before relying on either.

Tannery: water and chromium

Most leather is chrome tanned, about 85 to 90% by one estimate. Vegetable tanning uses plant tannins instead. The chromium used, chromium III, is much less toxic than chromium VI, but chromium VI can form when waste is poorly treated.

A 2021 peer-reviewed study in Heliyon sums up the scale. It cites industrial tanneries using 35 to 40 liters of water per kilogram of raw hide and discharging about 90% of it as wastewater. It reports that about 40% of the chromium used ends up in that wastewater, and that chromium VI is about a hundred times more toxic than chromium III.

Where treatment fails, the damage is local. In Kasur, Pakistan, a 2022 study found nearly 230 tanneries polluting groundwater after the treatment plant stopped working in 2012. Our guide to leather from Pakistan covers the newer treatment zones.

The Leather Working Group audits tanneries on energy, water, waste, effluent treatment, chemicals and chromium VI, among 17 sections. Its medals need a minimum score in every section, from 85% for Gold to 50% for Audited.

Finishing: where quality and footprint meet

How a hide is tanned and finished changes how it ends its life. A 2024 peer-reviewed study tested leather's biodegradability in water. Chrome-free leather broke down more, and faster, than chrome-tanned leather. Leathers tanned with plant- or biomass-based agents broke down most easily.

The same study found that biodegradability dropped at each step, from tanning to post-tanning to finishing. The chemicals added at each step bind to the leather. Stronger tanning also lowered it.

For a buyer, that ties footprint to construction: the more finishing stages a leather has been through, the more bound chemistry it carries. The test measures only biodegradability, not water or energy, so it does not prove one tanning method is greener overall.

End of life: leather vs PU and PVC

The two metrics point different ways. Leather wins on how it breaks down. A reported 2018 Kering accounting found vegan leather's production impact up to a third lower. We have only seen that figure second-hand, so weigh it lightly.

The study favoring leather was published in a leather-science journal. Neither result settles the question alone. For plant-based and other alternatives, our sister site compares leather alternatives and their trade-offs.

Why material score tables don't settle it

Charts that rank leather against cotton, polyester or PU often draw on the Higg Materials Sustainability Index. Norwegian and Dutch consumer authorities said its global-average data were problematic as proof for claims about a specific product. They noted its figures are cradle-to-gate, so they leave out use and disposal. The industry body behind it paused members' use of the data in marketing.

Read any score as one metric, for an average product, up to the factory gate. End of life is exactly where leather and plastics differ most.

What "sustainable leather" and "environmentally friendly" labels can claim

In the US, the FTC's Green Guides tell sellers not to make unqualified general claims such as "eco-friendly." A claim should name the specific benefit and must not inflate a minor one.

Under an EU directive, generic claims such as "environmentally friendly," "eco-friendly," "green" and "biodegradable" are banned from 27 September 2026, unless the trader can show recognized excellent environmental performance. Italy already bars terms such as "ecopelle" on materials that are not animal hide. What "eco leather" means in shops is defined on our reference site.

Certification has limits too. The Leather Working Group certifies the tannery, not the product. A brand may use the LWG logo only if all the leather in that product came from LWG-certified tanneries.

When a seller calls leather sustainable, ask four things:

1. Which benefit? Water, chemicals, carbon or end of life. A vague word with no named benefit tells you little.
2. Which tannery, and what medal? Look it up in LWG's supplier directory.
3. Chrome or chrome-free? It affects biodegradability.
4. How heavily finished? Each added stage lowers biodegradability.

The full buyer checklist is in six questions to ask before you buy.

Ask the maker

If you are weighing a piece from Leather Collection, note that its pieces are made to order and shipped from the company's facility in Pakistan. We make no environmental claim for them. Put the four questions above to this maker, as to any other, before you order.

FAQ

Is leather a renewable resource?

Hides come from animals, mostly ones raised for meat. The FAO treats hides as a meat by-product, while Veganuary disputes that framing. Whatever the answer, tanning and finishing add chemicals that stay bound to the leather.

What does eco-leather mean?

There is no single US definition. In the EU, "eco-friendly" labels without proof of excellent environmental performance are banned from 27 September 2026. Italy forbids "ecopelle" on materials that are not hide.

Is vegan leather better for the environment?

It depends on the measure. Leather biodegraded far better than PU and microfiber in a lab test. A reported brand accounting found vegan leather's production impact up to a third lower.