Why choose leather made in Sweden?
Leather is durable, hard-wearing, functional and comfortable – and beautiful in our opinion. Leather produced under the right conditions contributes to a sustainable society. The raw material in Swedish tanneries is hides and skins from cattle, sheep and reindeer, all of which are raised to provide us with food, i.e. meat and dairy products. The companies are thus utilizing a residual product and refining it into a long-lasting material. Leather is not a waste product!
Swedish leather is a residual product
The raw material in Swedish tanneries is hides and skins from cattle as well as sheep and reindeer, all of which are bred to provide us with food, i.e. meat and dairy products.
Leather and animal welfare go hand in hand
The production of high quality leather enables tanners to advocate for proper animal welfare. Traceability systems are in place that allow the leather industry to engage with agriculture on this important issue.
High level of craftsmanship
Manual effort and skills are required to constantly assess and handle each hide or skin. Good knowledge and many years of experience among employees is one of the Swedish tanneries’ main competitive advantages.
Biodegradable
Instead of hides and skins going to incineration, which is not a sustainable approach, tanneries process them into a biodegradable material that offers consumers comfort and beauty.
Questions & Answers
Are there many tanneries in Sweden?
The tanning industry is a small industry in Sweden and today there are only four tanneries/boilers operating on an industrial scale. The different companies have specialized in different niches within leather and hide production and therefore do not compete with each other.
In Sweden, there is Elmo Sweden, which primarily focuses on manufacturing leather for furniture and car interiors, Tärnsjö Garveri, which specializes in the production of vegetable leather, Kero Leather, which primarily works with reindeer leather, which is a unique raw material, and finally Tranås Skinnberedning, which prepares sheepskin.
How has the tanning industry developed in Sweden in recent years?
The Swedish tanning industry was large in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. At this time, tanneries evolved from being crafts to industries, which led to a decrease in the number of tanneries. Despite this, there were more than 100 tanneries in Sweden at the beginning of the 20th century.
The great decline of the tanning industry occurred after the Second World War and was due to several factors. One contributing factor was that the Swedish shoe industry went into crisis and several major shoe factories using Swedish leather closed down. Further reasons for the industry’s decline are that higher environmental requirements were imposed on the industry. At the same time, labor costs increased significantly, while a large part of leather imports came as low-priced leather from Asian countries.
On the other hand, tanneries in Sweden have done relatively well over the last 20 years and the number of tanneries has remained unchanged, although some companies have restructured during this time.
What does the future hold for Swedish tanneries?
The future looks bright for the Swedish tanneries as the tanneries producing leather and skins today have found their special niche and are competitive internationally with very high quality products.
For example, do Swedish tanneries cooperate on environmental issues?
The Swedish tanneries cooperate with the other Nordic tanneries on environmental issues. This means that the Nordic tanneries usually comment on new legislative proposals within the EU during the consultation period, are kept up to date on new environmental initiatives affecting tanneries and exchange experiences through intensive networking.
Where in the world are most tanneries located?
Today, most leather is produced in Asia, with China being the largest producer of leather. In Europe, the tanning industry is still very important. Italy accounts for around 60% of European production. Italy is also still the third largest producer of leather in the world.
How do Swedish tanneries compare environmentally with tanneries in other countries?
Swedish tanneries are at the forefront of the world when it comes to environmental work and are often cited as a good example internationally. The reason for this is partly the environmental legislation in Sweden but also that the Swedish tanneries have chosen to invest in environmentally friendly alternatives in production.
How are tanneries in Sweden environmentally regulated?
The Swedish tanneries are regulated by the so-called Environmental Assessment Ordinance. This means that, depending on their size, tanneries are either subject to licensing or notification. Either way, the tanneries must comply with the environmental conditions set by the authorities and, as a rule of thumb, the larger the tannery, the higher and more detailed the requirements. In Sweden, it is usually the county administrative board that checks that the requirements are met. Furthermore, Swedish tanneries also comply with the requirements of EU regulations such as the chemicals legislation in REACH.
It should be noted that only companies with production in Sweden are subject to Swedish environmental requirements and regular inspections by the authorities. It is therefore not correct that companies with production outside Sweden can comply with Swedish environmental requirements because they do not have Swedish environmental requirements (which may vary depending on local conditions) and furthermore they do not have inspections from Swedish authorities.
Are animals slaughtered to make leather?
No, hides and skins are a by-product of the meat industry and the availability of hides and skins is determined by meat production. The value of hides and skins represents only a very small part (often 1 – 3%) of the value of the whole animal and in recent years it has further decreased.
There are new scientific studies from the USA published in 2021. The study based on data from 1995 – 2019 shows that the number of animals slaughtered is not affected by the price of the hides, i.e. no more animals are slaughtered if the price of hides increases.
Demand for leather has declined in recent years while global meat consumption has not. As a result, in the United States and Australia, for example, hides have had to be discarded (landfilled) instead of being made into leather. In 2019, 5.5 million hides were landfilled in the United States and in 2020, 4.8 million hides were landfilled instead of making leather from this material. Instead, leather has often been replaced by various plastic materials that are oil-based materials. In 2020, 86.4 million shoes or 1.6 million sofas could have been made from leather from hides landfilled in the United States instead of throwing away (landfilling) the hides.
Is animal welfare important for tanneries?
Animal welfare is important for tanneries, although it is not always easy to influence slaughterhouses and farmers on this. The quality of hides/skins improves if the animals have a good life, while animal stress has a negative impact on hide quality. As a result, the quality of the leather produced also deteriorates.
Today, more and more work is being done to ensure the traceability of the hides used in leather production so that the consumer can obtain information on where the hides come from, even down to the farm on which the animal was raised. This will make it easier for consumers to be sure that the animals have been treated well during their lifetime.
Is tanning hides and skins a polluting industry?
It can be said that tanning is a potentially polluting industry and in many parts of the world tanneries are causing major environmental problems (for example in Bangladesh).
However, environmentally friendly technologies have been developed to produce leather where the environmental impact has been significantly reduced. However, there will always be an environmental impact from tanneries, and modern and efficient methods have been developed to treat wastewater and recover the waste products generated.
For example, waste from tanneries in Sweden is used, among other things, to produce biogas with good results and to produce gelatine used in candy making.
Figures on how much the environmental impact can be reduced by using environmentally friendly alternatives can be obtained from the Swedish Tanners’ Association.
What happens to tannery wastewater?
Tanneries, like most industries, use water in their processes and after the processes, the water becomes wastewater that needs to be treated before being discharged to receiving waters.
The Swedish tanneries use different strategies, but what they have in common is that the water is treated according to the strict environmental requirements in Sweden. Two tanneries have their own treatment plants that treat the water before it is discharged to the receiving water. One tannery carries out pre-treatment at the tannery before the water is treated in the municipal treatment plant, while the fourth tannery sends its water to the municipal treatment plant. The municipal treatment plants that receive water from tanneries in Sweden are built to treat the water from tanneries and the tanneries obviously pay for the extra cost that the treatment plant has to treat the water.
Are dangerous chemicals used in leather production?
Tanneries use many different chemicals in connection with leather production. The Swedish tanneries follow the European chemicals legislation known as REACH. This means that chemicals that could be dangerous either to health (both for workers and consumers) or the environment have been replaced by other less harmful chemicals.
Chemicals are constantly evolving and new knowledge may show that chemicals that were previously considered environmentally friendly may in some cases have negative effects on the environment or health. The Swedish tanneries therefore closely follow technological developments and if scientific studies indicate that a chemical used may have negative effects, extensive development work is started together with chemical suppliers to find a better alternative. This means that Swedish tanneries are constantly trying to stay ahead of developments and replace problematic chemicals with safer alternatives before the chemicals are banned.
Are arsenic, cadmium or hexavalent chromium used in leather production?
No, none of the above chemicals are used in tanning in Sweden. These chemicals are sometimes mentioned in connection with leather and leather production and we will briefly describe why below.
Arsenic disulphide was used many years ago in connection with the depilation of hides. The chemical has not been used in the tanning industry for many years, and today sodium sulphide is used instead.
Smaller amounts of cadmium could previously be found in some color pigments (yellow color) but have long been replaced by other color pigments in leather production.
Hexavalent (hexavalent) chromium, which is allergenic and can also cause lung cancer if inhaled, is not used in tanning. By far the most commonly used tanning method in the world is trivalent chromium tanning, which is another chemical form of chromium with completely different properties from hexavalent chromium.
It has been shown that small amounts of trivalent chromium can be converted to hexavalent chromium in leather under certain conditions. However, this is well known by the tanning industry and there is knowledge about why this happens and how to avoid the formation of hexavalent chromium. Swedish tanneries follow these guidelines carefully and hexavalent chromium is therefore not found in leather produced in Sweden. On the other hand, hexavalent chromium can in some cases be detected in imported leather where the process control has not been sufficient. It is not allowed to sell leather containing hexavalent chromium within the EU and Swedish authorities such as the Swedish Chemicals Agency often check this by analyzing leather products on the market.
What exactly is leather?
Leather is a unique material that comes from hides and skins that have been tanned. There is even a European standard (EN 15987) that clearly defines what leather is.
Unfortunately, some manufacturers of other alternative materials to leather incorrectly call their material leather because many consumers associate leather with good quality. Examples include vegan leather, pineapple leather and apple leather.
The tanning industry is not opposed to the development of alternative materials but believes that it is important that the consumer is informed of what these materials are. For example, vegan leather is often a plastic material, and in our opinion it is important that the consumer is given this information.
It is sometimes claimed that vegetable tanning is chemical-free - is this true?
No, this is not correct. Leather production consists of several processes and all tanneries, regardless of the tanning method, use chemicals, for example, in connection with dehairing, dyeing and fatliquoring of leather.
Even if we only look at the tanning process itself, this statement is not correct. Vegetable tanning agents consist of extracts from bark, wood or plants, but even these extracts consist of chemicals.
What is leather used for?
Leather has many uses. The largest use of leather today is for footwear and about half (50%) of all leather produced in the world is used for shoemaking. However, the use of leather for footwear has shown a decline in recent years and leather has experienced strong competition from alternative materials. Furthermore, around 20% of all leather is used for the clothing industry.
The furniture and automotive industries are major users of leather and just under 20% of all leather is used for furniture and car leather. Car leather in particular has shown an upward trend over the last 10 years.
Furthermore, around 15-20% of all leather is used for other applications including gloves, handbags, straps, saddles and more.
What is 'vegan material'?
The term ‘vegan leather’ is actually incorrect because, according to international standards, it is not leather. The term is often used for materials that are supposed to imitate leather but are made without animal products. The material usually consists of PU (polyurethane) and is thus a plastic product. This is usually not mentioned, but the material is presented as an environmentally friendly alternative to leather, while benefiting from its reputation as a high quality material.
There are also a number of materials on the market that are partly based on natural materials (e.g. pineapple leather and apple leather). These materials usually consist of two plastic layers with the natural material included between these plastic layers.
A scientific study from Germany on several of these materials was published in early 2021. The study showed that leather was the material with the best properties (properties relevant to shoe manufacturing were examined). There were alternative materials that performed well in some tests but then could not compete with leather in other tests. Furthermore, environmentally harmful substances such as phthalates were found in several of the alternative materials to leather. A copy of the scientific report can be obtained from the Swedish Tanners’ Association.
Craftsmanship a major strength of Swedish tanneries
Today’s leather production is an advanced, sustainable and environmentally conscious process industry. Despite advanced technology, humans still play the most important role in our Swedish tanneries. Manual efforts and skills are required to constantly assess and handle each hide or skin. Good knowledge and many years of experience among employees is one of the Swedish tanneries’ main competitive advantages and thus lays the foundation for high quality finished products.
Not the demand for leather and skins that drives availability
The demand for leather and sheep and reindeer skins does not determine the availability of these materials. The availability of hides and skins depends entirely on milk and meat consumption. Instead of hides and skins going to incineration or landfill, which is not a sustainable approach, tanneries process them into a biodegradable material that offers comfort and beauty to consumers.
The hide reflects how the animal has been treated
Animal welfare is important for tanners producing high-quality leather and sheep and reindeer skins, as the hide reflects how the animal has been treated. From a leather producing perspective, leather and high quality animal welfare go hand in hand. The production of high-quality leather thus enables tanners to make an impact on animal welfare. Traceability systems are in place that allow the leather industry to engage with agriculture on this important issue.
Swedish leather and skins meet EU and Swedish sustainability and environmental requirements
As part of Sweden’s manufacturing industry, Swedish tanneries work in accordance with current laws and directives that apply in the EU and Sweden. Leather and sheep and reindeer skins produced in Sweden meet EU and Swedish requirements for sustainability and the environment. Member companies of the Swedish Tanners’ Association use hides and skins from cattle, sheep and reindeer reared in Scandinavia. Leather is unique from a material point of view and offers a variety of uses. Swedish tanneries supply leather for shoes, bags, wallets, furniture, interiors of cars, trains and airplanes, as well as reindeer and sheepskin pelts.
The manufacturing process
The processing of hides and skins into leather can be divided into three stages:
PRE-TREATMENT
During the pre-treatment process, often referred to as the lime house process, the hides are prepared for the actual tanning process. Hair residues, salt and dirt are removed, the hides are degreased and soaked.
YARNING
During the tanning process, the hides are worked to make the leather stable and resistant to rotting, as well as flexible and durable. Many tanneries use large drums where the hides are rotated with water and chemicals during tanning.
FINISHING
During the finishing process, the hides usually undergo additional supplementary tanning as well as dyeing and fatliquoring to give the leather certain characteristics such as leather feel and color.
Tanning
Nowadays, three main tanning methods are used: chrome tanning, vegetable tanning and chrome-free tanning. From a life cycle perspective, several studies have shown that the three tanning methods are broadly similar, as all three have some environmental impact and require different inputs. If you want to know more about how leather, sheepskin and hide are produced in Sweden, read more at our member companies.
CHROMIUM EXCAVATION
Chromium tanning is the most common method worldwide and is used in around 75% of all leather production. It is based on the use of trivalent chromium (chromium III), a safe substance also found in food supplements. Despite what is sometimes claimed, hexavalent chromium (chromium VI) is not used in the leather industry. In Sweden, tanneries carefully follow guidelines to ensure that chromium VI is not produced during the process. Chrome-tanned leather is very durable and retains its properties for a long time.
VEGETABLE TANNING
Vegetable tanning is the oldest known method of preserving hides. It uses tanning agents from the plant kingdom, such as tannins from bark, leaves or fruits. It gives the leather a natural and living character that changes and develops over time. It is particularly appreciated in traditional crafts and for products where a natural aesthetic is important.
CHROME-FREE TANNING
Chromium-free tanning includes several methods where no chromium is used in the process. The most common is aldehyde tanning, where glutaraldehyde acts as the tanning agent. Often this method is combined with other synthetic substances to achieve the desired quality. Chromium-free tanned leather has different properties than chrome-tanned leather, and is often used when there are specific requirements for hypoallergenicity or environmental profile.
Tanning in Sweden
In Sweden, there are currently four tanneries that still carry out traditional tanning – all with a strong focus on sustainability, quality and craftsmanship. The processes are environmentally friendly and based on a combination of long experience and modern technology. Every step of the process – from raw hide to finished leather or hide – is characterized by knowledge, care and respect for nature. If you want to know more about how leather, sheep and skin skins are produced in Sweden, visit our member companies.
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Kero Leather
Read more about Kero leather specializing in reindeer skins.
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Tranås Skinnberedning
Read about the preparation process at Tranås Skinnberedning.
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Tärnsjö Tannery
See the process from hides to leather at Tärnsjö Garveri.
Sustainability and environment
As part of Sweden’s manufacturing industry, Swedish tanneries work in accordance with current laws and directives that apply in the EU and Sweden. Leather and sheep and reindeer skins produced in Sweden meet EU and Swedish sustainability and environmental requirements.
Leather is a unique material and offers a wide range of uses. Swedish tanneries supply leather for shoes, bags, wallets, furniture, car, train and airplane interiors, as well as reindeer and sheepskin skins.
4 pcs
At the beginning of the 20th century, there were over 130 tanneries spread across the country. Today there are only 4 left.
100%
of the hides and skins come from cattle, sheep and reindeer raised in Scandinavia.
This post is also available in: Swedish
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