Real Leather vs. Vegan Leather

If you follow my Instagram, read my blog, or have known me for some time, you probably know I’m plant-based. I love my lifestyle, and I love the way it makes me feel. I love eating vegetables every day, and I love treating myself to fun, vegan restaurants. However, just because I’m plant-based and support vegan establishments does not mean that I support everything that’s vegan.

I know I may get some hate for this, but I don’t support vegan leather. And I refuse to sell vegan leather because it violates one of the shop’s core principles: sustainability. Although it may seem counterintuitive, vegan leather is actually much worse for the environment than regular leather. Because, vegan leather is essentially plastic.

Some of our real leather pieces

First, let’s address some of the concerns around real leather. Of course, a lot of people’s aversion to leather comes from the mistreatment of animals. This I totally get, and for this reason, I make sure I get all of my leather from sustainable sources that have animal welfare policies in place.  

Like one of my favorite brands in the shop, Spell gets its leather only from sources that provide animals with the 5 domains.  The 5 domains are a framework that lists conditions that must be met for animals used in its animal products. To be considered ethical, the source must provide its animals with good nutrition, a physical environment with adequate space, healthcare, appropriate behavior species-to-species interactions, and positive mental experiences constituting animal happiness and satisfaction.  

Secondly, tanning leather can negatively impact the environment if the tanning process is primarily chemical-based and such chemicals are not disposed of properly. There is no denying this. However, that is why I take care to select brands with transparency and traceability in their supply chains.  

Now, there is a lot of argument that vegan leather is much better for the environment than real leather. However, I feel like most of those arguments are misconstrued. The first tenant in the debate that vegan leather is better for the environment is the fact that the cattle industry clear-cuts a lot of forests to raise cattle. This is true, but leather is a byproduct of the cattle industry.  

Even if everyone stopped wearing leather, the cattle industry would continue to raise cattle for meat purposes, but in that scenario, the skin would just be a waste product instead of being used as leather. Wearing leather doesn’t mean that cattle are being killed just for their skin. The skin is a byproduct of the meat industry, and leather comes out of finding a use for the skin which would have been discarded otherwise. 

Vegan leather is usually shrouded in greenwashing because it has significant environmental impacts. Vegan leather is usually made out of plastic, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or polyurethane (PU). Plastic obviously takes a toll on the environment, and plastic production can lead to increased emissions and significant environmental pollution. The production of PVC and PU is also very toxic and chemical-heavy. PVC in particular is particularly hazardous to the environment and releases dioxins when it begins to degrade.  

Vegan leather also does not last as long as regular leather. So, the environmental impact of purchasing one real leather piece that can last for years is much less than purchasing a vegan leather piece that you need to replace every couple of years. 

In addition to being more durable, real leather is biodegradable. Vegan leather is not, so when you need to replace your vegan leather every few years, you’re adding to waste accumulating in landfills. When vegan leather degrades, it also releases phthalates and other toxic particles that can negatively impact the environment and even your health. Think about all those microplastics that are floating around in our water and in our food. 

It’s for these reasons that I support real leather. Real leather fits better in my value of sustainability while vegan leather is a greenwashed attempt to cover up fast fashion. By selecting a high-quality leather piece, you know that you’ll have that piece through the years, and it can even be passed down. Vegan leather fits into our consumer-driven culture that pushes the idea of “more.” It’s a product of fast fashion, a cheap, plastic-based product that won’t last long. 

Real leather promotes the idea of slow fashion, of making a commitment to purchase and choosing quality over quantity. And trust me, I get the aversion to leather. No one wants to hurt animals, but in this case, look to second-hand leather. You’re not buying a leather piece, but rather you’re giving an old piece a new life. So with this, all I can say is be wary of “vegan leather.” It’s usually just a greenwashed attempt to promote fast fashion and disregard to actual benefits of having a leather piece that lasts through the years.