Animals Used for Clothing FAQs

 

“What’s wrong with wearing leather? Aren’t the cows going to be killed for meat anyway?”

Many people believe that leather is “just a leftover” from meat production, but that’s simply not true. Animal skins are actually the most economically important byproduct of the meat industry.

If you buy leather, you are directly contributing to the cruelty of the meat and dairy industries. For example, when cows raised for their milk are no longer able to make as much milk as they used to, they are killed, and their skins are made into leather. The skins of their offspring—calves who are raised for veal—are made into pricey calfskin items.

 As people stop eating and wearing animals, the demand for meat, dairy products, and leather will decrease and fewer animals will be forced to suffer on factory farms. There are lots of leather alternatives available, so get that dead skin out of your closet! Find out more about leather and the great alternatives that are available by clicking here.

“Isn’t leather better for the environment than synthetics?”

Although leathermakers say that their products are “eco-friendly,” leather production actually harms the environment, and the chemicals used to “finish” or “tan” leather actually prevent it from biodegrading, which means that it won’t break down or decompose. Animal skin is turned into finished leather at factories called tanneries, where they use a variety of dangerous substances, including mineral salts, formaldehyde, coal-tar derivatives, and various oils, dyes, and finishes, some of which are cyanide-based.

 The waste produced by tanneries not only contains the chemicals mentioned above, it’s also full of other toxic substances and pollutants, like protein, hair, salt, lime sludge, sulfides, and acids. These chemicals can leak into the groundwater near tanneries and make residents sick.

Most leather produced in the U.S. is tanned using a chemical called chromium. The Environmental Protection Agency considers all waste that contains chromium to be hazardous to human health, so it’s no surprise to us that many people who work in or live near tanneries become ill. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that the incidence of leukemia among residents in an area surrounding one tannery in Kentucky was five times the national average.

“I don’t have the time to search high and low for nonleather shoes and accessories. What should I do?”

It’s so easy to find nonleather products these days that there’s just no excuse to still be wearing someone else’s skin! Lots of department stores and shoe stores carry synthetic shoes, bags, wallets, belts, coats, and other gear—they look just like leather but didn’t cost anyone’s life. Just look for labels that say “all man-made materials” or “synthetic.”