What Is Vegan Leather

A few decades ago, vegan leather was introduced to the market, and today it has won popularity with many people, continuing even to achieve more. In this article, we plan to introduce vegan leather and after discussing what vegan leather is, we will introduce different types of it.

What Is Vegan Leather

Most people consider leather as a product resulting from processing animals’ hide such as that of cows, goats and horses, which will be used for producing bags, shoes, coats, belts after tanning process. However animals’ hide is not the only source for producing leather and with regard to the progress in leather industry, today leather can be made from other resources.

Despite the natural leather that is made from animals’ hide, vegan leather and synthetic leather result from combining materials from resources other than animals. This way, leather can be made without hurting animals and using chemicals.

This is good news for vegans that leather is made without hurting live animals. The most important feature of this leather is its close similarity with animals’ leather. The products are so similar that one may not notice any differences with animals’ leather when touching vegan leather. Knowing about the components of vegan leather, one can only make sure about the non-animal source of of this type of leather. It is still important to keep in mind that different types of vegan leather has upsides and downsides that are unique to it.

Vegan Leather Categorization

It was already mentioned that vegan leather is made from non-animal resources, and is not seen as a threat to the lives of living animals. But if we categorize leather based on the animal or non-animal resource of the material, non-animal leather will be divided into some subcategories.

• PVC or Synthetic Leather
• PU Leather
• Pinatex Vegan Leather
• Cork Vegan Leather
• Cactus Leather
• Mushroom Vegan Leather
• Grape Vegan Leather

PVC or Synthetic Leather

The first group is referred to as PVC leather. The main component of PVC leather is plastic. This special type of plastic which is softened using chemical and comes from combining 57% chloride, and 43% carbon. The substance is originally made using gas and oil, so the the traces of this type of leather can be followed in fossil fuels. This type of leather is called synthetic leather.

Many experts don’t count PVC leather as vegan leather, because the mass production of it is initially due to its low price as a result of which it is widely used in low-quality products.

Polyurethane Leather

Another type of non-animal leather is titled as polyurethane leather and is called PU in short. PU is usually talked about as a kind of vegan leather. This type of leather is made by adding glue to polyester fibers and just like PVC leather results from combining chemical plastic substances with Petroleum compounds. The most important point about this leather is the supervision of the European Union on production process so that as little chemicals as possible will enter the environment.

In comparison with different types of PVC leather that usually seem to be thick, this type of leather is made of fewer layers and is more flexible which makes it more similar to leather. Most types of synthetic leather are made of the same substance and are more expensive than PVC leather.

The similarity between PU and animals’ leather may be the main reason for using a combination of PU and animals’ leather in producing leather products. This combination is also titled as «Bicast Leather», which is a product made of animals’ leather with a PU cover.

The Difference between Synthetic Leather and Animal Leather

Regardless of the fact that the main difference between these two types of leather lies in the raw materials they are made with, there are other key features that distinguish them from one another. The first difference you may notice in the first encounter, may be the smell of natural leather that is not found in synthetic leather products. Furthermore, synthetic leather maintenance is not really hard and users don’t need to have the same considerations as they do in case of natural leather. In other words, to clean synthetic products, a damp cloth is all you need.

One of the main features of synthetic leather that is quite welcomed by producers is the possibility of producing synthetic leather products in different colors. Another feature of these products is their bright and mirror-like appearance which is sometimes seen in varnish shoes. Although it is possible to use a varnish cover for natural leather products as well, bright finishes are normally seen in synthetic leather products.

What is the Strangest Type of Vegan Leather?

In this article, we discussed different types of non-animal leather, which are not vegan but no animals were hurt in the course of their production. In the following, we will discuss different types of vegan leather, which are made and processed with very little chemicals.

Pinatex Leather

This is the most vegan-based type of leather which is made of pineapple tree waste, specially its leaves. the history of this type of leather goes back to 1990s and the final product has the same appearance as natural leather.

Cork Leather

After removing and chopping the oak tree bark, it starts drying out. but once again, it will be boiled and left for drying out. The layers will be then sliced to tissue-thin layers and covered with special substances.

Among the main features of oak trees, one must mention staying alive even after it is cut. The leaves and branches continue growing even more than before. So it is not strange to see the high durability, and elasticity in this type of leather. cork leather is also waterproof, anti-allergy, anti-fungal, and fire-resistant.

High durability of cork leather has turned it into one of the best choices for producing leather products. Cork leather is used for producing leather products such as bags, shoes, suitcases, umbrellas and even upholstery.

Cactus Leather

One of the plants used for producing vegan leather is cactus. This type of leather is made with mature cactus leaves and turns into leather using non-toxic chemical substances. But the most important problem with this type of leather is that it is not biodegradable.

Olive Leather

Olive is among the plants which is used for producing vegan leather. Furthermore, the leaves of olive trees contain substances that are useful for tanning animals’ hide.

Mushroom Leather

Mushroom leather is made from mushroom roots, which are called «Mycelium». This type of leather has great durability, and is among the products that is used in Chinese medicine. One of the other upsides of mushroom leather is its fast growth, which takes 2 to 3 weeks until it reaches the size of a cow leather page. This is a very short time compared to the growth of a cow that takes about 2 to 3 years.

To know more about leather products, we suggest you don’t miss our article on «The Difference between Cow and Goat Leather».

Grape Leather

This is another type of leather which is made of grape seeds and skin, and looks very similar to animals’ leather. This is the latest type of vegan leather, which is still being examined.

The Difference between Animal Leather, Synthetic Leather and Vegan leather

Studying the two types of leather and finding out about their differences is not restricted to their roots. However, there are other differences which will be discussed in the following.

Strength and Durability

With regard to the fact that vegan leather is soft and flexible, it is widely used in clothing industry. We should still keep it mind that the thinness of vegan leather is among the main reasons for not being as strong as animals’ leather. In other words, if you take good care of animals’ leather products, you will enjoy them for years. Synthetic leather products, on the other hand, work for 1 or two years at best.

The Final Price of Animal leather and Vegan Leather

The price of each leather product which is made of natural leather, is times more than that of synthetic leather products which is mainly because their quality is a lot more than that of synthetic leather products. The surface of natural leather will look different over years, which is called forming a patina. The new appearance will add to the attractiveness of natural leather; however, such a change can never be noticed in synthetic leather products, and they usually wear out after one or two years.

Degradability in Nature

One of the main concerns of environmentalists is about how long it takes things to degrade in the nature. Besides the animals as the source of conventional leather, one of the main reasons for disagreement of these people with animals’ leather is the long durability of this type of leather in the nature. Environmentalists believe that it takes at least 50 years for the natural animal’s leather to degrade in the nature.

It takes much longer for the PVC synthetic leather to degrade in the nature, and even after 500 years, synthetic leather may turn into tiny pieces which won’t degrade. With regard to the fact that PU leather is produced through a controlled process, it is more possible for it to degrade in the nature. Experts believe that the fungi in the soil can speed up the process to a great extent.

Natural leather does not degrade completely in the nature either. As an example, pinatex leather is a kind of vegan leather and includes a resin cover that postpones degradation of this leather in the nature. However, mushroom leather that is made from the roots of mushrooms can easily degrade in the nature. As a result to answer the question that why the difference between the vegan and animals’ leather matters, protecting the nature fits the best.

Breathability

One of the main features that can be found in different types of natural leather and vegan leather, is breathability. This very feature means that leather products can transfer the air to the outside (in the form of vapor) and prevent sweating. Such a feature can’t be found in PU or PVC leather.

To buy the best leather product, we suggest you study some gold tips for buying the best leather gift.

Conclusion

In this article, we studied vegan leather and after studying different types of vegan leather, we discussed the main differences between this type of leather and animals’ leather. Besides goat and cow leather, other types of leather such as synthetic leather, PVC leather and PU leather are among the materials that have been used for producing leather clothings for years. Furthermore, vegan leather has been made of cork, mushroom roots, pineapple shoots and leaves through the last few decades. Grape seeds and skin are also used for producing grape leather which is rather new.

But it is still an undeniable fact that vegan leather products can’t be as strong and durable as animals’ leather products. To buy natural leather products we suggest you visit EG leather products.