Vegan leather is just another way to say pleather, and it’s NOT environmentally friendly at all.

Buying vegan leather is not an environmentally friendly option, even compared to real leather… which is an uncomfortable reality. It’s just crappy plastic at a premium. Producers used the word “vegan” to their advantage to guilt people into thinking that purchasing their product is an “ethically minded” and “environmentally conscious” decision. But they aren’t making the environment better at all.

Faux leathers consist of a knitted polyester base with a PVC or polyurethane coating and are also usually manufactured from fossil fuels and take a long time to break down once they reach the end of their useful life (which is a lot shorter than leather products, since leather looks better with age). Additionally, leather products are biodegradable wheras PVC takes significantly longer to break down in the landfill.

You go from one industry which is traditionally based on skins that come from the meat industry to another industry that’s heavily dependent on petrochemicals. Both are arguably damaging to animal habitats, animal life and the future of this planet.

This doesn’t mean eating green is useless, on the contrary, its a great idea both for environment, animals and the well being of humans…. but buying vegan leather certainly is an ineffective way to apply vegan ethics to your life.

People are rightly mentioning alternatives to that aren’t plastic, however, the majority of what you find marketed as “vegan leather” in everyday consumer products is unlikely to consist of cactus leaves or mushroom leathers.

according to this market research 55% of the synthetic leather market is Polyurethane leather, next most common are PVC and then polyol. They don’t even make note of the alternatives mentioned, and what I can find on cactus leather and mushroom leather implies that while there may one day be a market and suppliers, it’s currently not enough in demand to find statistics on it anywhere, though I’m sure they exist.

I’m happy with letting people know that the current vegan leather market isn’t really good simply because it says vegan. Instead, we should inform them of alternatives that are not only vegan, but less worrisome for the planet in general.

I stopped eating meat this year, still eat fish, eggs, and cheese. I own a bunch of leather goods (jackets, boots, belts, etc). Even though I know it isn’t good for the environment, I just find it lasts a whole lot longer than the plastic alternatives. I’d rather buy a used leather jacket than a new fake leather one.

I have a pair of boots from 8 years ago I got new, and they will probably out last me (so long as I keep up with maintenance). Alternatively, I also got a pair of fake leather boots around the same time and after 3 years they had to be retired as they completely fell apart.

Edit: people seem to really like pointing out that fish is meat. I’m not arguing it comes from an animal lol. It is just how I quickly categorize stuff like that in my head based on growing up in a mostly kosher household. Fish and eggs are considered pareve. I’m also doing this as a way to lower my carbon foot print and eggs and fish tend to have a comparatively smaller foot print.

I’m a Pakistani-American Muslim, so I get what you’re saying and I agree. And I am not really a fan of veganism as it exists now. I definitely like their end goals and they’ve made a lot of great changes to the way we look at meat consumption, but I think a lot of their actions are counterproductive and short-sighted, and are often concerned more with the letter of their laws than the spirit of them. For example, wool is a great, natural material that sheep need shorn off anyway, and wasting it to replace it with a microplastic-shedding acrylic alternative is pointless and harmful. Or honey is produced in excess anyway, and the practice of beekeeping helps bolster the declining bee population. Plus, you can often buy local honey which is much better than importing sugar from far away or using agave syrup, which is environmentally destructive to harvest.

In general, I wish vegans as a whole were more concerned with big-picture animal and environmental welfare than they often are with just sticking strictly to a no-animal/animal byproduct lifestyle. Supporting a small local farm that gives its animals good homes and is mindful of its environmental impact is much better than supporting a large corporation greenwashing its many plastic products. And yet these kinds of farms are falling by the wayside because people just see the word “vegan” and think it must be the more ethical option by default.

I don’t think I’ve actually ever seen it being hailed as environmentally friendly. I think everyone knows it’s obviously plastic and not very green.

It is definitely in line with the ethical side of veganism as no animals are directly harmed or exploited or used in it’s production. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen it advertised as environmentally friendly anyway.

They’re trying out some other neat options too now like cactus. I think we’ll get there someday.

Most people dont go vegan just for the animals. They do it as a lifestyle that is typically environmentally conscious. By saying that something is “vegan” you are trying to tag onto that whole lifestyle.

And also, this isn’t a food item. So where it comes from and how its derived factors more into people’s decisions on whether they should buy them.

I am not saying all vegans do this. But the ones that I know are vegans because of ethical AND environmental reasons. So where their food and purchases come from and what they are made from are extremely important to them. Just as an example, if they found out that the farm that they got their produce from was also doing animal testing, they wouldn’t buy from them. It is a lifestyle to them that entails making ethical decisions on what they buy and consume.

That being said, all of my friends who are vegan would definitely research anything before buying it. So any marketing trying to deceive them would be wasted, as they would find out pretty quickly that vegan leather is far from an ethical buying decision in their view.

There’s a handbag company out of Italy that makes their good with apple skin instead of leather. Good pricing. I have one of their bags in my wishlist. I can’t remember the name but it starts with an M

Edit: the brand is Miomojo for anyone interested!

Friendly reminder that the Amazon fires were started to clear land for cattle grazing. Of which a direct byproduct is leather. Animal agriculture emits more GhGs than all transport combined, and buying leather is only contributing to that. Just buy plant leather, something second hand, or something made of fabric. Not having leather won’t kill you

unfortunately its lifespan was estimated to be at about 6 months… BUT if they can price it accordingly so that consumers can buy it without going broke, its definitely an option. Unfortunately however, the synthetic market is predominantly plastic, and they are entitled to market it as vegan leather… which is shitty… but the reality i’m trying to address in this post. Veganism is a great mission, but those who are standing by their values are… for lack of a better word being manipulated by marketing trickery.

Mushroom and pineapple leather exist. But it’s not cheap, I would expect you to find it in a specialty store or under order. If a m2 of leather is $10, pineapple leather is $60/m2. It’s like food, If you are serious about it you better be willing to pay up. Or it’s green washed and well, you get what you pay for.

The price is the troubling factor, and its what keeps these products you’ve mentioned virtually non existent on the market next to synthetic ‘vegan leather’. It is sad that the demand for plastic is greater, but when you look at a pretty mat&nat bag alongside a pineapple leather bag, most people will pick the “prettier” one out of vanity. So I completely agree with your assessment, and I do feel that the legal definition of vegan leather should be a lot less broad than it currently is.

I would also like to add that while a lot of “vegan leathers” are indeed made with plastic not all manufacturers use this method and some use recycled plastics rather than plastics made just for the leather. As someone below me mentioned, some businesses use things like apple skin. Brands like Audi have also experimented with using materials from recycled fishing nets and plastics fished up out of the water. So in addition to many being made with plastic I think its also worth saying that where they get this plastic is just as important since a process that takes plastic out of the environment and reuses it will likely have much better effects than a process that produces new plastic that will eventually end up in the environment.

I guess what im trying to say is dont take a company’s word at face value (a good amount of doubt it healthy) but also dont be afraid to take the time and research where exactly your materials are coming from.

I used to believe this was true, but unfortunately the products are usually made IN PART with recycled materials and are essentially a composite of old and new plastic to make the item durable.

I completely agree that recycling can PRO-LONG the journey of plastic from factory to ocean/landfill… but it still ends up there sadly. The true vegan leathers that get little to no attention biodegrade at a rate much much faster than leather… but hey, at least they actually do. Plastic does not. Ultimately the point of this post was to really point out that manufacturers use the vegan term to TARGET peoples emotional, moral and ethical values… even though the product itself does not reflect those values at the core. Its marketing trickery.

You should also know that most genuine leather is absolutely horrible for the environment (obviously aside from the donor animal), and I would say often worse than imitation leather. Most real leather is treated with a million horrible chemicals and dyes, and then, is often backed with the same PVC or plastic coating as imitation leather. There are vegan leather alternatives that are good — like Cork, Agave, Mushroom, and tree bark. Cork is cool because it’s naturally water resistant (one reason for treating the other materials) and they just shave it off the tree.

You can buy it online even in a poor, definitely non-vegan rural area like mine. I literally called a restaurant the other day to ask if any of their dishes were vegan and the person on the other end laughed at me. Still bought vegan shoes online, even though I’ve never seen them in a store. If something doesn’t fit, I just return it and buy a half size up or down.

Unfortunately this article you’ve linked doesn’t provide statistics to show what percentage of the market reflects products made from true organic material. The existence of these products is irrelevant if the consumer can’t find them, buy them, or be informed about the important differences. Find me a brand of similar success to Mat & Nat, which sources its products from factories in china and admits to being PVC based, and an educated discussion can be had. For now your argument is underdeveloped.

The source that you provided clearly has stated that the MAJORITY of “vegan leather” is highly environmentally unfriendly (PVC and PU). While there are other options, as mentioned in the article (such as natural vegan leather which sounds like a great option, about time) have you even ever come across them out and about? I can say for certain (having gone to many a department stores for Christmas shopping recently) that without exception all those that I have come across at average-price retailers (and even higher-priced retailers) is just plastic/oil based leathers. If you are actually the plant based person that you claim to be, why would you not instead just write about these natural vegan leathers in your reply to being with, rather than accusing and kicking yourself in the leg? Confused.

I went plant based years ago. I’m basically in the middle here. Between the vegans and meat/dairy eaters. Both of those parties pretty much see this as a religion or politics. They conversations go exactly like this one we are having here and now.

When I started eating plant based, I let myself thing about being kinder to the planet and it’s inhabitants. So even though I would not eat a hamburger, I may buy a leather jacket, especially if there is no “vegan” option. I’m still going to buy a car that has leather seats in it but if I can choose cloth (not even fake leather), I’ll do it but also want the option of other materials. I like the smell of leather, I don’t have to watch the cow get butchered or even thin about it. But because of the way I eat, I’m wanting to support that kind of a lifestyle and will support it with my dollar.

When I needed a new wallet (that was cloth and velcro), I went to a “vegan” option. It was really easy to find and cost no more than a leather wallet.

Next I needed a new belt. I could have went with cloth, leather, plastic bags, about anything I wanted. But I looked fo a “vegan” belt. I did this because I wanted to support businesses that wanted to make an ethical difference in society. I did not care if Macey’s had one, if Kmart had one, or if my local mom and pop shop had one. If the price would have been so out of range I would have made a different choose. Remember, I won’t eat animal products, but the rest is me trying to do whatever small part to show manufacturers that there is a market for plant based products over animal based ones.

People then started asking me for proof of this and that so we could go off on other tangents that really don’t stay on the subject that was started. I’m used to that with the vegan/not vegan crowd. That is totally expected.

What was said about plastic being environmentally worse, I thought it was strange to not even mention that there are no other alternatives out there; when I know for a fact that that is wrong. Saying don’t buy plastics and think that you are being a great steward for earth would be a great message. But to go on about the manufacturing of real and fake leather and using only plastics without even mentioning cork, and other natural products seemed odd to me.

I buy vegan leather because I’m vegan and I don’t want anything I own to be the result of a dead animal. I try to also find the most ethically sourced product while I’m at it, but my first priority is to ensure no animal was harmed in the making of my garment/bag/whatever.

I do have a bag that has the inside made from recycled plastic bottles, and I recently just bought a jacket and jumper from another brand also made from the same thing.

not everyone who buys vegan leather is buying it because they think it’s more environmentally friendly — many buy it because the alternative is leather/animal products, and there are people who want to avoid that.

Also, leather in itself has a huge environmental impact (I would argue more so than non leather, due to the water and food required to keep the animal alive, the greenhouse gases emitted by the animal, the land cleared to ensure they have a place to live etc). I guess I’m a bit confused by your argument and what you’re saying.

That’s not true. I’m not vegan nor do I go out of my way to buy vegan products but as a person who tries to buy environmentally conscious clothes I know what you say is BS. Vegan leather is not plastic. If there is somebody at some point tried this tactic that makes them shitty but your portrayal of all vegan leather of being this way is simply false.

Also not all alternative clothing is necessarily the best for the environment either. The cotton for instance takes so much water to process it becomes wasteful from environmentally awareness point of view. There is not one way to be environmentally being conscious. It is almost impossible. Kind of the concept of using paper bag instead of plastic is still not good. If people are doing tiny bit of effort just to make a difference, in my book they are good people. It’s impossible to be 100% aware and conscious. So your post is kind of shitty for that reason too.

It depends what you make your vegan leather from. I don’t know if the term has a certain meaning apart from not being from animals in the US, but in Germany the term “vegan leather” is not protected and can mean leather from mushrooms, cacti, cork, PU, PVC, Pineapple, paper and more.

I think the author is talking about a material which is called “Kunstleder” (artificial leather”) in germany. Those leathers are usually from PU or PVC and do of course have some issues (micro plastic, high environmental costs, water usage, carbon production).

It is true, that plastic is by far not the best alternative for the environment but I do also think, that it is better than real leather. I like real leather, but the environmental and animal damage is way higher than vegan leather.

Of course it is difficult or nearly impossible to get rid of PU- or PVC-leather but it would be wrong to think real leather is environment friendly. Real leather often uses tannins and toxic chemicals to avoid the leather to rot away. This pollutes rivers and keeps leather from being biodegradable. In addition the animals have to be bred and transported for the leather which causes a lot of greenhouse gases such as CO2 and methane.

Apart from the animal cruelty in poor countrys the people producing leather also often get sick from the chemicals.

single-use plastic is the issue here. Mass produced plastic that spends most of its time being thrown out rather than the 5 minutes it is used to hold a 6 pack together or to take the groceries home.

The purpose is to limit the suffering of animals to the best of your ability, and you should do some research into how leather is produced. It isn’t always a byproduct so it’s not “green” as many of these animals are farmed into existence.

I would rather have a polyester jacket or acrylic fur rather than contribute to mink farms or goose down.

We have to stop things like plastic packaging, plastic bags, straws, bottles …. all of this single-use use stuff is devastating for the environment.

The word you are thinking of is “indirectly” harmful.

Directly harmful to an animal would be, say, to kill it for its leather, fur, down, etc.

If they are equally evil; I will choose the products that are not made of beings that were killed for their use. I wouldn’t wear a jacket made out of a dog or cat just for the purpose of environmental friendliness.

As I said, a meatless diet is the single most impactful way an individual can help the environment. So hopefully more alternatives are made that don’t require plastic to be produced (I have heard some amazing things being done with bamboo and the like).

Plastic still dominates the market while those alternative materials get lost and forgotten. Mostly due to how quickly they break down (Kombucha leather has approximiately 6 month lifespan) and what people can consistently pay out of pocket for.

Those materials you speak of would have a fighting chance if PVC was eliminated as a potential material to be marketed as “vegan leather”.

Vegan leather is not pleather. Vegan leathers are made from coconut husks and pineapple husks and mango skins and so on and so forth. Get a grip. It’s totally environmentally friendly and some of it is high luxury and is being used in the new Mercedes vegan interior range like Mango skin. Get a grip. Trying to make vegans look bad. Shame on u!!!!!!!