• Weaker figures from European car manufacturers may now lead to new pressure on suppliers
• This will bring up questions about how much leather will go into new cars
• It could also mean that there will be another round of price pressure on suppliers
• Raw materials and leather types that can be described as ‘special’ or niche will continue to enjoy good interest
• Where leather is perceived as special, unique and recognisable for its benefits in the end product, consumers are still willing to buy.
MARKET INTELLIGENCE
In recent weeks, attention has remained focused almost exclusively on political developments. The US’s erratic tariff policy continued to influence the markets and the problem remained that while the tariffs as such were already a major problem, the uncertainty was even greater. Almost at the last minute, a decision on the final tariffs between China and the US were postponed for a further 90 days. Christmas sales in the US will presumably have played a major role in this, as many products for the main phase of annual consumption will be arriving in the US within this new 90-day period. In this respect, this is a certain relief for many suppliers and importers in the US.
The exact opposite applies to India, where tariffs of 50% have been announced and only a delegation, which is expected to arrive in India from the US on 25 August, can bring about a change.
Decisions regarding a possible end to the war in Ukraine are still unclear. The continuing unclear political situation is also having an increasing impact on international business and supply chains. Of course, as we have already mentioned in previous issues, the number of potential consumers in the world is still the same, and so is the potential for consumption. Nevertheless, psychology remains a key factor in the economy and when the mood is bad, it has a negative impact on consumer behaviour.
In addition to the direct political disputes, other side issues in the international community have also been of major importance for the leather industry over the past two weeks. The negotiations on the reduction and management of plastic waste have been a farce and must have felt almost like a slap in the face to the meat and leather industry. It was remarkable that we didn’t hear
a single word about possible natural alternatives.
Last Friday, which was also a public holiday in many European regions, marked the slow start of the return of the leather factories from their holidays. In most cases, it will be another week or two before all production is up and running again, but the industry as a whole now has to deal with the return and day-today business issues.
This means that active day-to-day business is still almost exclusively limited to Asia, and even there only a few large factories are still determining daily activity, at least on the commodity markets.
If you look at the European market for cattle hides, the heavy, male hides favoured for this purpose have recently defended themselves very successfully against price declines. On the one hand, this probably has to do with the lower slaughter numbers, but on the other hand, the revenues from the split and the longer-term price agreements with the automotive industry have played an important role to explain the stability. If new negotiations are pending here, or if the automotive industry’s practice of passing on problems to suppliers comes to fruition, this could also lead to increased pressure on prices in this sector in the coming months.
This is not a particularly positive outlook for leather for the near future and it is further proof that the initiatives to change this will only achieve anything through consumers themselves. Of course, there is still some hope that big brand names will recognise the potential of leather again; sometimes difficult economic times are much better for this because they make new initiatives necessary if you want to generate new impetus for sales. However, in our opinion, this would require a considerable rethink and a creative and convincing utilisation of the material as a key argument for the end product. The chances
TUESDAY, AUGUST 19 2025
of this happening have probably never been better. The raw material is cheap and plentiful, the capacities are available and the restrictions and also mostly self-made obstacles (above all in Europe). Of course political uncertainties still stand in the way of a new development. Without a new departure, which must come very quickly, it will be very difficult to initiate the urgently needed trend reversal.
Anyone who needed a further, indirect argument in favour of leather was also supported last week by the reports on the huge quantities of textile waste. Everyone is aware of the gigantic quantities of textile waste that arise not only from used products, but also in many cases from unused clothing. We do not want to talk about the technical problems of textile recycling here, especially with mixed fabrics. Of course, outerwear plays the biggest role in terms of quantity, but nobody should forget that a large proportion of shoes are also made from textile fibres, or rather plastic.
Of course, some people also raise the issue of overconsumption. Fast fashion plays a particularly important role here. Whilst it is probably very difficult to change people’s desire to treat themselves and consume in the short term, there is also a lack of reference to the material, its properties and its longevity. This offers another great opportunity to provide consumers with many good reasons why they should choose a leather product. These references and discussions have of course already been held many times. Within the bubble of the leather industry, this still takes place on a daily basis and we are constantly proving to ourselves that we have better, superior materials. However, it is economically more attractive for consumer goods manufacturers to ignore leather as a material. Also, they have been constantly legitimised by campaign groups as to why they should do without leather. And the leather industry just has to put up with the accusations. At some point, the time may come to consider whether attack is sometimes the better economic defence. In any case, the passive, adaptive strategy has shown not really shown any sign of changing things for the better.
If figures from the European car manufacturers now lead to new pressure on suppliers, it would come as no surprise. This will bring up questions about how much leather will go into new cars; it could very well also mean that there will be another round of price pressure on suppliers.
For low-value raw hides, the next round of the question of how much can still be recovered for the leather industry and how
much raw material needs to be redirected to other uses will take place in the coming months. Of course, this includes the protein market first and then bioenergy. As there are currently few signs that global meat production is on the verge of a significant reduction, these questions will have to be answered seriously in the coming months.
The market for splits and non-cattle hides has shown no great change or movement in recent weeks. Here too, of course, the holidays play a major role and this is particularly true for the split. However, we believe we are also seeing signs of a reorientation in this sector. On the one hand, demand for proteins needs to be monitored, as this market is still growing at the moment for various reasons. On the other hand, the availability of raw materials poses a challenge.
The fact that the production of cattle hides has changed and shifted significantly in recent times, both regionally and in terms of volume and production cost, means that protein
manufacturers must also adapt to these changes. The issue is very complex and many parameters play a major role in this. As this market is much more dominated by large, globally operating groups, individual decisions play a much greater and also more effective role. The question of whether this sector could possibly also be wild card for the leather industry will probably also be decided in the coming months.
Otherwise, all raw materials and leather types that can be described as ‘special’ or niche in some way will continue to enjoy good interest. Where leather is perceived as special, unique and recognisable for its benefits in the end product, consumers are still willing to buy these products.
We wish everyone who can still enjoy their holidays a good rest and lots of fun over the next two weeks. After that, it will be back to the routine and the problems of everyday life. Some will be travelling to Asia at the end of the month and may take the opportunity to
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visit other countries and business partners in addition to the All China Leather Exhibition in Shanghai (September 3-5). This will probably give us a little more insight into the real situation and conditions for the rest of the year. We will endeavour to gather and evaluate as much information as possible. Until then, we wish you all a good time.
US PERSPECTIVE
Export sales of cured cattle hides for the period ending August 7 were 332,500 pieces. The figure for exports of wet blue was 45,300 pieces.
The most recent reports on hide prices showed branded steer hides weighing 62-64 pounds at an average of $14 each, and heavy Texas steers weighing 60-62 pounds down slightly at $10.50 per piece.
Cow hide prices were up, showing northern dairy cows at $13, south-west dairy cows at $12.50, northern branded cows at $5 and south-west branded cows at $4.50, with weights of 50-52 pounds in each case.
The source of all these figures is the US Department of Agriculture. Please note that the prices quoted represent ‘ballpark’ figures.
Cattle markets USA
The sharp ups and downs in futures prices made it difficult for buyers and sellers to find the market. The reported sales of fed cattle in the north were mostly steady, to cases of $2 higher. Live prices were $242-$246. Dressed prices ranged from $380-$386. In the south trade was at a standstill with packers bidding $235 and cattle owners asking higher. There were only 1,000 head sold for the week in Kansas at $233-$237, and no sales in Texas.
Processors have been able to capitalise on the shortened supplies of product created by small slaughter volumes causing the pain of product shortages to shift from processors to retailers. Box prices are surging boosted by sharp drops in daily slaughter and uncertainty regarding imports from Brazil and continuing blockages at the US-Mexico border of live imports of cattle.
Despite increasing stories in the media of the high price of beef, the consumer has yet to face the brunt of recent price increases. Repricing at the grocery will not happen all at once but instead will occur store by store and firm by firm. Meat counters will continue to feature beef, but with less product and higher prices.
The discount in the deferred contracts is pricing in a plant closure. No one knows what plant will close, or the size of the plant, or when it will close. When a plant does close, it will allow packers to reduce the red ink that has been spilling most of this year. Live cattle operators will lose some of the benefit of too much processing capacity and the losses at the plants that subsidised gains in margin at the feedlot level.
Choice box prices continued higher moving to more than $400. Retailers are
struggling in the market to add to inventory in anticipation of the upcoming Labour Day holiday (September 1). They were finding limited supplies of beef causing intense competition and sharply higher prices. The reduced slaughter is changing the leverage between processors and retailers, shifting the burden of rationing onto the retailers.
As the herd rebuilds producers will be forced to live with smaller supplies, applying price pressures to all the middle operators in the beef chain. They will face the same challenges that have been present in the nation’s beef plants for the past two years. Navigating this operating environment will become increasingly difficult.
Producers are taking all cattle to larger weights both on pasture and in the feedlot. They are discovering which cattle transition best to heavier weights. Many 600-pound cattle that, historically, were sent to the feedyard were redirected this year to summer grass and will deliver this fall at historically heavy weights.
Corn prices softened in overnight trading. Elevators are lowering the fall basis in anticipation of a large corn crop, but raising the current basis on the spot September contract. Corn basis levels in Guymon, Oklahoma, are up $1, basis the September contract.
GERMAN PERSPECTIVE
This week: Very few leather manufacturing plants are open again following the holidays. Only in the northern regions of Europe, the first factories have already returned or will return in the next week and resume production. For everyone else, it will take another week or two.
The first conversations are already being held again and of course everyone is now waiting for the next round of political decisions in the coming weeks. Reports on the international negotiations on plastic pollution in the last few days and supposedly new findings regarding the overproduction of textiles suggested it is all about recycling, but nobody talks about the natural alternative that humans had been using for millennia.
If you look at the position of leather in comparison and the attacks that have been levelled against leather for years by the environmentally-conscious campaign groups, you get the feeling that there are few responsible voices in the discussion. The big mistake that has been made in Europe remains the lack of humility about what can and should actually be realised in the global political environment. Dreams are and remain permissible, but they are not good counsellors. Political uncertainty weighed on business again last week. India sees itself threatened by a possible 50% tariff on exports to the US. In China, the general economic data is not conducive to spreading much optimism in the leather industry ahead of the All China Leather Exhibition in Shanghai (September 3-5).
Actual Slaughter Under Federal Inspection
Europe is still on holiday and so there was hardly anyone to talk to seriously about business.
In the European automotive leather industry, the reduced order expectations are now being compounded by the fear that the very poor results of the car manufacturers for the first half of the year will put pressure on prices for leather in the next negotiations. This is not a particularly favourable prospect for the talks in the near future.
Slaughter is still relatively low, which is probably why many people are not yet giving it much thought, but anyone thinking about the trend a little further ahead cannot help but take these issues into account. Once again, there have only been a few isolated transactions, which are not really worth mentioning when assessing the market.
The kill: There is also very little to report on the beef production side. Slaughter numbers are low and, at least for Germany, decisions
regarding the structure of the slaughter industry are awaited. The production figures for the month of June showed a clear decline, which in retrospect also explains why the price pressure in the market was still manageable in recent weeks.
What we expect: We expect that this week will also be dominated by the holidays. Overseas, it is difficult to expect any decisions to be made regarding developments for the rest of the year. In principle, there are not enough leather orders, there is a lot of uncertainty and if anyone decides to buy raw materials, it is more likely to be either the large industrial producers in Asia, who tend to focus on goods from North or South America, or those who are only tempted by extremely low prices. The All China Leather Exhibition in Shanghai will perhaps be the first milestone that can be used as a guide for further development.
LONG READ
Leather and the Circular Economy: Thought Leadership
Still no solution to
plastic pollution
An intergovernmental committee has failed, once again, to agree a treaty on ending plastic pollution. A consumer backlash seems inevitable. In response, leather has a chance to become the material of choice for more of the world’s citizens.
More than three years after the United Nations formally adopted UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) resolution 5/14, efforts to put in place a legally binding instrument for putting the resolution into effect have failed time and again. The resolution is a
commitment to bring to an end what the UN openly calls the “global plastic pollution crisis”. This matters to the global leather industry. Most of the synthetic materials that brands consider as alternatives to leather contain large quantities of plastic. If these brands tell consumers the truth, that in most cases their only aim is to save costs, they should face a backlash for trying to make financial gain from making the plastic crisis worse. If they go down the path of claiming their choice is for environmental reasons, UNEA 5/14 and the lengthy discussions it has engendered should hole their arguments below the water line.
Demand for tools
Following the much-celebrated agreement on UNEA 5/14 in March 2022, the UN wasted no time in setting up an intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC) to draw up a formal treaty for addressing the plastic problem, including in the marine environment. It convened in November that year in Uruguay, met again in Paris in May and June 2023, then in Kenya in November 2023, in Canada in April 2024, and then for the fifth time in Busan, South Korea, in November and December 2024. The committee’s work has been to try to put the tools in place to make the resolution a reality. This can only happen if all the travel and all the talking deliver a binding instrument for fixing the situation.
The fifth session in Busan lasted a week. Member states were confident a treaty would emerge at the end of that event. They were unable to come to an agreement and the UN suspended the session. It said negotiations would continue in 2025. After Busan, the European Union accused some UN member states, including Saudi Arabia, Russia and Iran of obstructing a deal. It called on those countries “to show more ambition”.
Ambition is a key word in this INC’s circles. A group of more than 100 countries have formed a self-styled High Ambition Coalition. It is they who expect and demand the treaty that emerges to be far-reaching in meeting the promises of UNEA 5/14. This will mean hard-hitting measures covering the full lifecycle of plastics, unsustainable consumption and production of plastics, and the presence of chemicals of concern in the composition of plastic products. “These are outcomes that science clearly tells us are necessary,” the delegation from Norway said recently. Other key areas of debate include funding, technology transfer and the scope of how far the treaty will go and to which government or authority it will assign responsibility for remedial action, including in international waters.
In comments she made after Busan, EU Commissioner for the environment, Jessika Roswall, quoted forecasts that suggest that, if plastic production, plastic use and disposal continue as they are at the moment, the volume of plastic leaking into the environment will triple by 2060. She says half of all plastic waste is still going to landfill and that less than 20% of it is being recycled. “A decisive response to the global pollution crisis is needed,” she said.
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Drowning in plastic pollution
The UN’s own Environment Programme (UNEP), is responsible for convening and supporting the INC, has been no less graphic in its assessment of the situation. Its director general, Inger Andersen, says: “Plastic pollution is already in nature, in our oceans and even in our bodies. And plastic leakage to the environment is predicted to grow by 50% by 2040. If we continue on the current trajectory the world will be drowning in plastic pollution with massive consequences for planetary, economic and human health.” For added detail, Kenya’s delegation says there are 7 billion tonnes of plastic waste circulating in the environment and 430 million new plastic products being manufactured each year, while many countries still have no “proper take-back schemes”. Weighing into the debate on social media, France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, pointed out that every minute, 15 tonnes of plastic end up in our oceans.
According to Inger Andersen, the disappointment of Busan prompted “a surge in diplomacy”, which made her optimistic about reaching an agreement at a follow-up event in August 2025. The negotiating committee met formally at the UN’s Palais des Nations building in Geneva and resumed talks for a further ten days. The UN called the Geneva meeting the decisive second part of the fifth session, or INC 5.2. Busan was to be conclusive; rather than say it hadn’t been, the committee seemed to prefer to present Geneva as a continuation. Delegates from 185 countries duly travelled once more. They were left in no doubt about the urgency of completing the task in hand this time. On the opening day, Ms Andersen, told them: “I remind you that the world wants and needs us to tackle the plastic pollution crisis. People are outraged, they are worried, and rightly so. It is now high time for member states to get the deal over the line.”
Multilateralism struggles to survive
However, to watch and listen to the
proceedings at INC 5.2 was to understand why multilateralism is rumoured, in some quarters, to be in danger. There were four plenary sessions, one of which, at 20 minutes to midnight on what was supposed to be the final day, August 14, lasted only 40 seconds. The closing plenary resumed at 5.30 the following morning. Delegates had been working in smaller groups throughout the ten days and nights, but were unable to agree definitive text for more than a few of the 32 articles that were in a draft treaty they had brought from Busan.
By the evening of August 13, signs of fatigue and frustration were much more in evidence than any hint of a breakthrough. The INC chair, Ecuadorean diplomat Luis Vayas Valdivieso, took it upon himself to present a new draft of the report an hour before that day’s plenary session. He explained that his intention was not to impose anything on delegates, but to offer them versions of the articles that he and his team had compiled after listening to and consulting with
delegates for more than a week. “It is for you to mould and improve,” he said.
Weak ambition
Delegates spent the rest of INC 5.2 trying to carry out this moulding and improving of Mr Vayas’s first draft, leading, in the wee, small hours of August 15, to an amended second draft from the chair’s pen. Any assumption or hope that a treaty could be crafted from either version of his versions of the text proved unfounded.
To loud applause, the delegation from Colombia said the first draft was “totally unacceptable”, insisting that there was no scope for turning it into a formal UN treaty. Colleagues from Chile said that even a quick reading of that first draft showed “enormous gaps” and a lack of tools that member states would be able to use genuinely to combat plastic pollution. The head of the delegation from Panama, Juan Carlos Monterrey, picked up the theme, but laid aside diplomatic language. He said: “What we have on the
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table now does not work for the majority of the people in this room. The red lines of the majority here have been stamped on, spat on and burned. This is simply repulsive. This is not ambition, it is surrender.” Perhaps inspired by the forthrightness of this, Emmanuel Macron took to social media once again to describe this first draft as presenting “weak ambition” and being “simply unacceptable”.
Scope for improvement
On the other side of the debate, delegations from Kuwait, Bahrain, India, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Qatar, Malaysia, Iraq, Iran, Algeria and others also complained about the first Vayas draft, saying red lines of theirs had been crossed too, although they certainly seemed more comfortable with the chair’s revisions than their High Ambition Coalition counterparts. “We see some improvements and progress in the new text,” Iran said. “But setting out the scope of the treaty more clearly is of great importance.”
Kuwait said it and like-minded countries had been calling for this clarification on the scope of the treaty for a long time. Qatar backed this up, saying: “It would be difficult for us to pursue obligations if we do not know what we would be signing up to.” On the same theme, Indonesia said: “A well defined scope is not only a practical necessity but also a moral imperative to deliver an equitable and effective treaty capable of ending plastic pollution and safeguarding our planet for future generations.”
Midnight’s diplomats
On reconvening the final plenary session in the early hours of August 15, Luis Vayas Valdivieso said he and his team had tried to take all of these points of view into consideration in working on the second draft. “Differences remain, but we have made good progress,” he said. “This is my best attempt at capturing the spectrum of views and moving us closer to the tools we need [to fulfil the UNEA 5/14 mandate]. But there will be no further action at this stage.”
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If further INC gatherings are to take place, delegates from countries that produce large volumes of petroleum and plastic made it clear that they did not want Mr Vayas’s texts to be the basis of further negotiations. “There were rejections of the first draft because of a lack of balance,” Saudi Arabia said. “That lack of balance continues in the second draft.” India insisted that the record should show clearly that there was no consensus on either draft. Qatar agreed. Kuwait expressed dismay at the extent to which the two versions of the text Mr Vayas had produced had veered away from its (Kuwait’s) interpretation of the mandate. Its head of delegation commented: “The further the text departs from the mandate, the more appealing it seems to some. This is a deeply concerning trend.” Some, including Uganda, argued that the work of the smaller groups on the different articles of the Busan draft treaty could be of help in the future, but the INC process appeared to have moved forward very little as
delegates made their way to Geneva airport.
Insufficient progress
Jessika Roswall was in the room and addressed the plenary on behalf of all 27 EU member states. She said she thought there had been some progress, although not enough. She also said she thought Luis Vayas’s second draft still fell short of the EU’s demands on a number of points, but that it, and the other outcomes from Geneva, could serve as a good basis for INC 5.3, if there is one.
She made it clear that her hopes about securing a treaty in Geneva had been sincere. “We cannot hide that we had higher expectations,” she said. “We came to conclude a global plastics treaty here in Geneva. We have confidence in the science that impels us, confidence in the people that push us and confidence that a majority of countries are aligned on this.”
The EU Commissioner for the environment said she was also sure a majority of people in business and civil society want a globally binding treaty for the sake of a clean, competitive, circular economy and public health and wellbeing. “That is what we fought for,” she concluded. “We have not managed to get there.”
At the end, the delegation from Palau spoke on behalf of 39 small island developing states to express disappointment. “We continue to invest precious resources and personnel in the INC process, yet repeatedly return home with insufficient progress to show our people,” the head of delegation said. She added that the longed-for treaty should deliver action genuinely to end plastic pollution “in the interest of protecting our precious marine environments, our livelihoods, and the health of our people and of our future generations”.
After the plenary, a fatigued and frustrated Inger Andersen addressed the media. She said: “We did not get to where we wanted, but UNEP will continue to engage in the multilateral process and also to engage at the ground level with member states. This work will not stop, because plastic pollution will not stop.”
Better choices
Presenting leather as a good alternative for brands and consumers to choose if they want to contribute less to the plastic pollution crisis is far from new. Germany’s national leather federation, VDL, said in a newsletter in 2022 that concerns about microplastics should convince consumers to choose leather instead.
Microplastics are shed from clothing and shoes made from synthetic materials, it explained. Tiny particles are ingested by marine life and are now so ubiquitous that they have been found in the bloodstream of healthy humans.
The most common sources of microplastic pollution are polypropylene (PP) in packaging materials and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) used in the manufacture of bottles. Other synthetics in common use are polyurethane (PU) or polyvinyl chloride (PVC), frequently
used in the manufacture of footwear and clothing. All are derived from fossil fuels and are often disguised as vegan materials or ecomaterials so as to invite consumers to think they are “sustainable”. It is also common, as we know, for materials manufacturers and brands to misuse the term ‘leather’ when presenting products made from these plastics.
Leather products are free of microplastics, VDL pointed out, so when consumers buy items made from leather, they are helping to preserve the environment from plastic.
In some applications, there will always be demand for plastic. Managing partner at tanning technology developer Wet-green, Thomas Lamparter, says, for example, that he will always want his dentist to wear plastic gloves. But exasperated by the news from Geneva, Mr Lampater has raised his voice to renew the request that brands take seriously the public’s antipathy towards plastic.
“It doesn’t have to be leather,” he says. “But when you choose a material, ask the right questions. Can it be repaired? Is it
QUAKER COLOR A
STEP AHEAD IN AUTOMOTIVE
FINISHING
biodegradable? Is it truly circular? If we cannot answer ‘yes’ to those questions, how will we explain to our children that we could have done better but chose not to?”
footwear group Birkenstock has reported revenues of nearly €1.6 billion for the first nine months of its current business year, the period ending June 30, 2025. This is an increase of 16.5% year on year.
It declared net profits of more than €250 million, an increase of 80%.
Chief executive, Oliver Reichert, said underlying demand for Birkenstock’s distinctive footwear products remained strong.
Supplying innovative finishes to the automotive industry for over six decades
Quaker Color is a division of McAdoo & Allen, with roots in the leather industry for over a century
He said the company was well positioned to manage the 15% tariffs on trade between the US and the European Union through “a combination of pricing adjustment, cost discipline and inventory management”.
New biopolymer research begins at Cromogenia
Spanish leather chemicals manufacturer
Cromogenia has launched the Biopol Project, a new R&D initiative developing biopolymers from renewable sources and agro-food waste.
The project aims to replace petrochemical products in tanning and retanning with ecofriendly alternatives based on alginate and starch polymers.
In collaboration with the University of Barcelona, the 25-month project will develop and test polyaldehyde and hydrolysed biopolymer prototypes to reduce CO2 emissions and hazardous waste while maintaining or improving performance.
The project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund and the Spanish
Centre for Technological Development and Innovation.
Cromogenia said, “We continue to push the boundaries of sustainable chemistry with the Biopol Project, focused on biopolymers from renewable sources and agro-food waste to replace petrochemical products in tanning processes.”
Next edition of Loewe Craft Prize launches
Leathergoods
brand Loewe has launched the 2026 edition of its Craft Prize.
Launched in 2016, this competition aims to celebrate the traditional skills and also the innovation that current generations of craftspeople display. It aims to celebrate and support working artists “whose talent, vision and will to innovate promise to set a new standard for the future”, the brand says.
Participants must be professional artisans, aged 18 or more at the time of entry. All nationalities are welcome. Entries must be pieces of work that demonstrate artisan skills in leather, bookbinding, furniture, textiles,
wood, paper, ceramics, enamelwork, jewellery, lacquer or metal. Entries using other materials are also possible if accepted by the expert panel that will help judge the 2026 prize.
One of the members of the expert panel will be Loewe’s vice-president for leathergoods merchandising and buying strategy, Satoko Fujiwara.
Participants have until October 30 to submit details of the work they want to enter.
The expert panel will shortlist 30 entries and announce the winner in spring 2026. The winner of the 2026 Loewe Craft Prize will win €50,000.
IULTCS announces 2026 Young Leather Scientist Grants
TheInternational Union of Leather Technologists and Chemists Societies (IULTCS) and its IUR Commission have announced the launch of the 2026 Young Leather Scientist Grants (YLSG) programme.
Designed to encourage innovation among researchers under 35 in the field of leather science and technology, the scheme offers three awards: Basic Leather Research, Sustainability/Environmental Research, and Machinery & Digitalisation Solutions.
Funding ranges from € 1,000 to € 1,500, with sponsorship provided by Leather Naturally and Italprogetti, alongside a sponsor to be confirmed for the Basic Leather Research category.
Winners will also have the opportunity to present their work at a future IULTCS Congress.
The deadline for submissions is November 30, 2025.
Five leather projects in first Regenerative Fund for Nature report
Luxury group Kering has published an inaugural impact report for an initiative called the Regenerative Fund for Nature. The inaugural report covers activity in 2024.
Kering launched the initiative in partnership with specialist nature protection campaign group Conservation International in 2021. Their aim was to offer grants to farmers, campaign groups and other stakeholders involved in regenerative agriculture.
Through this, they said they wanted to help transform land on which four raw materials are produced; these materials are cotton, wool, cashmere and leather.
In 2023, fashion group Inditex joined up as a Regenerative Fund for Nature partner.
The report shows that, by the end of 2024, the Regenerative Fund for Nature had active projects in eight countries.
In total, there were 13 projects under way. Five of these focus on leather, three in Argentina, one in France and one in Spain. The involve sheep, goat and bovine leather.
Zünd to debut Captura Workflow leather-cutting system at Simac
Cutting systems specialist Zünd will showcase a new level of automation and integration in leather processing at this year’s
Simac Tanning Tech trade fair.
In partnership with software firms Mind and Mindhive Global, the company will present the Captura Workflow for the first time.
Captura combines AI, machine vision and digital cutting in a fully integrated process, aimed at improving the precision, speed and reliability of hide detection, classification and cutting.
Zünd will be at stand B55/B47/A56/A48 in Hall 10 during the show, starting on September 23.
DMU to host international leather conservation event
De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) will host the triennial meeting of the Leather and Related Materials Group (LRMG) this October, welcoming global experts in leather conservation.
The LRMG is a sub-committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), whose members include the Louvre, the British Museum and the Vatican Museums. Its members meet every three years to exchange research and developments in conserving leather, skin and related materials.
The 2025 event, titled Leather Conservation for Today, will take place on October 30 and 31, with optional technical visits on October 29. The programme will feature presentations on new techniques and approaches, alongside networking and cultural events. A hybrid format will allow remote attendance via Microsoft Teams.
Associate professor Gillian Proctor said hosting the event was an honour, highlighting DMU’s commitment to teaching and promoting leathercraft. The university has ongoing partnerships with the Worshipful Company of Leathersellers, the Worshipful Company of Curriers and the Museum of Leathercraft.
July figures confirm the rise in electric car production in Germany
Automotive industry association VDA has reported that German manufacturers made 2.5 million passenger cars in the first seven months of 2025. It said this was an increase of 5% compared to the same period last year.
Electric vehicles contributed 864,000 to the total. VDA said this was a new record. This gives electric vehicles a 40% share of domestic production so far this year, compared to 30% at the same point last year.
VDA said it expects the total number of electric vehicles Germany produces this year to reach 1.7 million.
Firefighters take tannery tours to better serve the sector
Thirty members of the Pisa Fire Brigade have taken part in visits to tanneries to learn about the Santa Croce sull'Arno district, in part to better plan any emergency response for the tanning industry.
The delegation visited the Sciarada tannery, where health and safety proceedures were
highlighted.
Assoconciatori president Riccardo Bandini said: “The firefighters perform a valuable service for the local area, and their firsthand knowledge of the specifics of our companies could prove crucial to facilitating their efforts.”
ZDHC transitions to ‘simpler experience’ for suppliers
ZDHC’s Roadmap to Zero Programme for "cleaner chemistry" is transitioning to a simplified digital experience, after “listening to feedback”.
The ZDHC Roadmap to Zero digital space will be made up as a collection of Roadmap to Zero journeys, one for each stakeholder group, with the suppliers of apparel, textile, leather and footwear’s “roadmap” the first to launch.
“Carrying out sustainable chemical management can be complex and navigating many PDF guidelines can be challenging for users,” the company admitted.
ZDHC said the new platfrom will simplify
how brands manage supplier requirements by consolidating them into one platform.
Next year, the launch of the Brands Roadmap to Zero will provide brands with a holistic view of their own implementation progress, it added.
Dietrich Tegtmeyer to deliver Heidemann Lecture in Lyon
The International Union of Leather Technologists and Chemists Societies (IULTCS) has announced that leather industry expert and consultant Dietrich Tegtmeyer will deliver the prestigious Heidemann Lecture at the upcoming XXXVIII IULTCS Congress.
Dr Tegtmeyer, who previously served as Global Head of Business Development and Industry Relations at leather chemicals group TFL, told Leatherbiz he will use the lecture to reflect on the potential of collagen beyond leather. “I will talk about collagen in general and the use as well as applications beside leather,” he said. “The idea is to inspire R&D work to generate value out of by-products from the leather industry.”
makes it natural
The Heidemann Lecture is a keynote presented at each IULTCS Congress in memory of Professor Dr Eckhardt Heidemann (1925–1999), who made significant practical contributions to the science of leather manufacture and held a lifelong interest in the structure and properties of the collagen molecule.
The XXXVIII IULTCS Congress will take place in Lyon, France, from September 8–11, and registration is available at the congress website.
New Zegna leathergoods and footwear facility under construction
Fashion brand Zegna is building a new leathergoods and footwear production facility at Sala Baganza, near Parma.
The company has said that, when complete, the site will cover 12,500 square-metres and will employ 300 people.
In comments to Rome-based daily
newspaper La Repubblica, chief executive, Gildo Zegna, grandson of the company’s founder, said that, when the new site is fully operational, it will make half of all its footwear there.
He said the company had also set up its own academy for training new-generation artisans.
Lapi Group announces new board appointments
Lapi Group has confirmed a generational change in its Board of Directors as part of a long-planned leadership transition.
Francesco Lapi, formerly vice president and CEO of the Group’s Chemical Area companies, has been appointed president, taking over from his uncle, Roberto Lapi.
Tommaso Lapi, who heads the Group’s Industrial Area companies, becomes vice president. Caterina Talini, daughter of outgoing board member Alessandra Lapi, joins the board as a director for the first time.
Roberto Lapi remains on the board, continuing to contribute through his experience and external relations work.
The company has described the appointments as a natural continuation of its growth strategy, combining strong regional roots with an international outlook.
It has reaffirmed its focus on industrial development and ESG policies as central pillars for future investment. Other board appointments have also been made to support this transition and reinforce the Group’s long-term vision.
Hermès expansion boosts leathergoods revenues
French
leathergoods brand Hermès has bucked the trend and reported a rise in first-half revenues, with growth in all regions.
Sales of €8 billion were up 8% on last year, with the leathergoods and clothing divisions propping up declining sales in watches and perfume.
Asia excluding Japan posted 3% growth in the second quarter. Sales in Japan grew 16% and sales in the Americas increased 12%.
The Leather Goods and Saddlery house grew 12% thanks to the increase in production capacities. The growth will continue when the company opens another leathergoods workshop in L’Isle-d’Espagnac in September, and then workshops in Loupes (Gironde) next year and Charleville-Mézières in 2027. It will open a 10th leathergoods hub in Normandy with a new site to be inaugurated in Colombelles by 2028.
Hermès increased its workforce by more than 500 over the first six months of the year, including 300 hires in France. At the end of June 2025, the group employed 25,700 people. The house in February distributed a €4,500 bonus to all its employees worldwide for 2024.
Axel Dumas, chairman of Hermès, said: “The solid first-half results across all regions reflect the strength of the Hermès model. We will continue to invest and recruit to ensure the group’s sustained success.”
ASIA
Thai industry targets exotic markets
The Thai Tanning Industry Association has welcomed government approval for the commercial breeding of water monitors, citing opportunities in the exotic leather trade.
President Suwatchai Wongcharoensin (pictured) said the policy, which follows the Wildlife Conservation Committee’s decision to list the reptile for breeding, will allow licensed operators to buy stock from the Department of National Parks at 500 baht ($15.5) each. He noted the material’s appeal to luxury brands such as Hermès, with prices ranging from 4,200–14,000 baht ($130 - $430) per square metre.
Thailand’s leather exports were worth about 12 billion baht ($370 million) in 2024, with exotic leathers making up roughly a quarter of the total. Industry value reached nearly 20
billion baht ($620 million) last year, but output has fallen by 40% in 2025 due to weak demand and uncertainty over US tariffs. With a 19% rate now confirmed, orders are expected to recover, though below previous levels.
Stahl to showcase sustainable leather coatings at ACLE Manufacturer of speciality coatings for flexible materials Stahl will present its latest innovations at the All China Leather Exhibition under the theme “Innovating Together for a Sustainable Future.”
Visitors can expect to see new developments in leather coatings for fashion, luxury and automotive interiors, with a strong emphasis on solutions that combine high performance with sustainability.
The event takes place at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre from September 3–5, where Stahl will be exhibiting at Stand E2D11.
Strong start to new financial year for leather sector in Bangladesh Bangladesh’s leather industry has started the new financial year (July 2025-June 2026) on a positive footing.
Data from the country’s export promotion bureau said revenues for July 2025 were $127 million, up by nearly 30% compared to the same month in 2024.
This increase was primarily driven by a rise of 25% in footwear export revenues, which grew to almost $80 million.
Exports of finished leather reached $9.25 million, an increase of 21.9% year on year. Leathergoods exports increase in value by more than 40% to reach $38.3 million.
Weak demand weighs on Bata India
Footwear retailer Bata India has reported a 10% drop in consolidated profit before exceptional items and tax for the first quarter, falling to 748.5 million rupees ($8.54 million), according to Reuters.
Revenue for the three months to June 30 slipped 0.3% year on year, while expenses rose nearly 1%. The results were affected by sluggish consumer demand and higher costs, including 47.8 million rupees spent on a voluntary retirement scheme at one manufacturing unit. In the same period last year, the company booked a gain of 1.34 billion rupees from the sale of a land parcel.
Bata, which sells footwear and leather accessories, said weather-related challenges likely reduced store footfall in the quarter. However, it remains optimistic about a recovery in consumption later in the year.
China and US agree further 90day trade truce
Hours before triple-digit tariffs were scheduled to kick in on either side, the US and China agreed to continue their negotiations for another 90 days.
Earlier this year, the US said it would impose total tariffs of 145% on imports from China.
In retaliation, products moving in the other direction were to be subject to tariffs of 125%.
In mid-May, the two countries agreed to hold back on these tariff levels for 90 days, with the US charging an interim level of 30% on imports from China, and China imposing a 10% tariff on imports from the US.
This arrangement was scheduled to stop on August 12, but a few hours before the deadline, the two governments announced they would keep the lower rates in place for a further 90 days.
Tariffs drive 63% profit slump at Tata Motors
Tata Motors has posted a 63% fall in quarterly profit, Reuters reports, its fourth straight decline, as U.S. import duties wiped £254 million ($341 million) from April–June earnings.
The tariffs, along with the phase-out of UKbuilt Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) models, hit both profit and cash flow.
Overseas JLR sales fell 11% due to the export halt and model changes. The company kept its JLR forecast unchanged, citing a U.S.–UK trade deal in May expected to ease the tariff impact.
Chief financial officer P.B. Balaji said China’s rare earth magnet export ban had not affected operations and contingency plans were in place.
Quarterly profit fell to 39.24 billion rupees ($448 million) from a restated 105.14 billion a year earlier, which included a one-off gain. Revenue slipped 2.5% as sales slowed.
Mr Balaji expects conditions to remain challenging but sees potential improvement with tariff clarity and festive demand.
June export figures highlight US beef’s China problems
Inthe first six months of 2025, packers and traders in the US exported just over 600,000 tonnes of beef, bringing in revenues of $4.9 billion. These figures represent declines of 6.5% in volume and of 6% in value.
Figures for June alone show a fall in beef exports of 15% in volume year on year and a decline of 18% in value. The US Meat Export Federation (USMEF) said June’s export value for beef, $769 million, was the lowest in 17 months.
USMEF said gains in Central and South America, as well as in a number of emerging markets in Africa, could not offset “the steep decline in exports to China”.
President of the organisation, Greg Halstrom, said the main difficulty with the Chinese markets is that only a few packer plants in the US are authorised to ship product to China.
An agreement the two countries reached in 2020 should have made it easier and faster for more meat packing plants in the US to gain this authorisation, but with trade tensions showing no sign of easing, progress has halted.
“The June export results really underscore the urgent need to resolve this impasse with China,” Mr Halstrom said. “China’s tariff rate
on US beef is currently 32%, which is too high, but not insurmountable. The problem is, with only a few plants eligible to ship to China, the tariff rate becomes irrelevant.”
US doubles tariffs on imports from India
The Reserve Bank of India has played down the likely effect on the country’s economy of US tariff policy.
Exports from India to the US will be subject to tariffs of 50%, following an announcement by US president, Donald Trump, on August 6. He said the US would impose additional tariffs of 25% on imports from India, on top of already announced tariffs of 25%.
In response, the governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Sanjay Malhotra, said that the US tariff hike was unlikely to have a major impact on the Indian economy, unless retaliatory tariffs come into play, which he said was unlikely.
Mr Malhotra added that he remained optimistic about arriving at “an amicable solution” in India’s trade dispute with the US. If tariff rates remain at 50%, though, they are likely to hurt India’s leather industry.
When details of steep tariffs on a wide range of trading partners began to emerge from the US in April, the Indian leather industry said the US accounted for more than 20% of its total export revenues of $4 billion per year.
CSR report shows leather’s ongoing importance for ISA Group
ISAGroup’s launch of its new COSM business unit has generated widespread publicity, but the group’s commitment to leather is as strong as ever.
This is one of the messages to come across clearly in the group’s fourth corporate social responsibility report, which it published at the end of July, sharing figures for its operations last year.
In the report, ISA Group said it had launched COSM to meet customer requirements for “additional sustainable materials in response to current market trends”. It said it had spent years researching and developing with scientists materials that can work alongside its LITE (low impact on the environment) leathers.
It pointed out that it presents COSM materials as alternatives, not to leather but to petrochemical-based materials that have a high level of impact on the environment. It said COSM products represented high-quality, reliable additional materials for brands that are already buyers of LITE leather.
In the report, Macau-based ISA Group revealed that at the end of 2024, it had a capacity of 1 million square-feet of leather at its Mississippi TanTec Leather plant in the US, plus a capacity of 6 million square-feet per month at its Saigon TanTec facility in Vietnam.
Its Heshan TanTec Leather plant in China has a monthly capacity of producing 6 million square-feet of crust from wet blue, plus a capacity of 2 million square-feet per month of
finished leather from crust.
The group’s fourth facility, TransAsia TanTec, which is also in Vietnam, is home to COSM. In addition, this plant has the capacity to produce 3 million square-feet of leather per month at the moment. It has plans to increase this to 10 million square-feet per month in the coming years.
AMERICAS
Brazil’s tanners say orders are already being cancelled
Brazil’s national leather industry body CICB has said it is “working constantly” to help the country’s government reach a negotiated settlement with the US on tariffs.
But it said the US’s decision to begin imposing tariff rates of 50% on imports from Brazil from August 6 was already having an impact on leather-sector exports from the South American country.
Figures for July 2025 show that Brazil exported 14.2 million square-metres of finished and semi-finished leather to all markets, bringing in revenues of $89.2 million.
CICB pointed out that this was an improvement in value of 7% compared to June 2025, but a fall of 21.1% compared to July 2024. In terms of area, the July 2025 total was down by 14.5% year on year.
It said its member companies were already suffering the effects of the imposition of high tariff rates and had reported delays and even cancellations of orders.
Mexico clamps down on footwear imports
Mexico will temporarily stop the importation of finished footwear under the IMMEX programme to prevent tax evasion and protect local producers.
Economy minister Marcelo Ebrard said the change, ordered by president Claudia Sheinbaum, will take effect in the coming days. IMMEX, designed for raw materials and semi-finished goods for processing and export, has been used to bring in completed shoes without paying duties.
A minimum 25% tariff will apply to such imports. Mr Ebrard told industry representatives in León, Guanajuato, that “temporary imports of footwear will no longer be allowed. If you want to import, pay the taxes.”
Footwear production in Mexico fell 12.8% between 2019 and 2024, while imports surged 159%, according to the Economy Ministry. Much of this trade bypassed export requirements and was sold domestically, often at artificially low declared prices.
The sector employs up to 130,000 people, with León hit hard by low-cost imports, mainly from China. Mr Ebrard said tighter monitoring will follow, targeting technical smuggling and false invoicing.
Quarterly loss recorded at Tandy Tandy Leather Factory, the Fort Worthbased leather and leatherworking retailer with 101 stores in the US, Canada, and Spain,
reported second-quarter 2025 revenues of $17.8 million, up 2.8% year on year.
Gross margin improved to 59.5%, but the company posted a net loss of $0.2 million, compared with a $0.1 million profit a year earlier.
Operating income was $0.1 million, with adjusted EBITDA at $0.3 million. Expenses rose 5.5% to $10.5 million, mainly from leasing its headquarters and distribution centre. Tandy ended the quarter with $16.4 million in cash from the sale of its headquarters.
The company expects sales momentum to continue into Q3 but anticipates tariff impacts and a full-year operating loss.
Horween teams with Florsheim shoes
US footwear brand Florsheim has partnered with Chicago-based Horween Leather Company on a six-piece capsule collection for fall 2025.
The range features three Florsheim styles, the Renegade Lux Boot, Heist Lux Sneaker and Vibe Lux Oxford, each offered in light and dark versions of Horween’s premium Essex leather. Designs take inspiration from heritage styles and the industrial roots of Chicago, where both companies were founded.
According to Florsheim parent Weyco Group Incorporated, the collection highlights Horween’s distinctive patina and markings, with the leather intended to develop a wornin look over time. Each shoe incorporates Florsheim’s proprietary Comfortech footbed with a Horween leather footbed cover.
The collection is available exclusively via Florsheim’s website.
Lima show delivers good Latin America contacts for Assintecal
The21 Brazilian leather and footwear components companies that attended the Expo Detalles exhibition in early August have calculated that a combined total of $2.1 million in revenues are likely to come in as a result.
Their participation was made possible by Brazilian Materials. This is a dedicated export support programme for the leather and footwear components sector, maintained by industry body Assintecal in partnership with the national export and promotion agency ApexBrasil.
International market manager at Assintecal, Luiz Ribas Júnior, said the Brazilian delegation at Expo Detalles made more than 370 contacts with importers, most of whom were from other parts of Latin America.
Half-year figures show tariff effect on US hide exports
Tradetensions that have been building up since the early part of this year appear to have had an effect on US hide exports.
China has long been an important destination for US hide exports, but is one of only a small number of countries that has threatened high levels of retaliatory tariffs on the US in response to announcements from Washington.
The US has threatened tariffs of 145% on imports from China. In response has raised its threatened tariff levels on imports from the US of 125%.
Those high levels are on hold after a second 90-day truce came into effect on August 12 and discussions on a deal between the two biggest economies in the world are ongoing.
The uncertainty that the tariff debate has caused, however, appears to have made a big impact on China’s imports of US cattle hides.
Figures that the US Department of Agriculture has published for the first six months of 2025 show that China imported just over 4.5 million US hides, with a total value of $114.8 million.
Compared to the first six months of 2024, these figures represent declines of 31.6% in volume and of 38% in value.
Overall, the US exported 7.7 million hides during the six-month period, bringing in revenues of $205.9 million. These figures mean a fall of 20% in volume and of 30% in value year on year.
Mexico complains about adidas sandal scandal
Asandal
that US designer Willy Chavarria developed in collaboration with adidas is the subject of a possible legal complaint from the Mexican government.
Mr Chavarria’s most recent collection for adidas, unveiled in Puerto Rico on August 3, includes a slip on huarache shoe, based on a traditional leather sandal that artisan producers make by hand in the Mexican state of Oaxaca.
However, the adidas version has involved no work with those Oaxacan artisans and, at first, gave them no credit. After a series of complaints, Mr Chavarria issued a statement, apologising to the communities of Oaxacan for appropriating their traditional design ideas.
He said he was sorry not to have developed the project with traditional producers.
On August 8, Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, said she was aware of the sandal scandal and she said the government was considering submitting a formal legal complaint.
She commented: “Big companies often take products, ideas and designs from the indigenous communities of our country. In a certain way, they are usurping the creativity of our indigenous peoples. We are working on a new law that will give those communities additional guarantees.”
Bogotá again plays host to artisan leather fair
Anew edition of an open-air artisan fair to celebrate local leather craftsmanship took place in Bogotá from August 8-10.
For a number of years now, Bogotá’s chamber of commerce has invited manufacturers of leather, leathergoods and footwear to take part in the fair, Talento al Parque (Talent in the Park).
On this occasion, around 100 business owners took part, mostly from the Restrepo, San Benito and Villapinzón districts of the
Colombian capital.
The chamber of commerce said the event would serve as a shop-window for artisan manufacturers, opening up new markets and emphasising the value of skills that have been an important part of the culture of Restrepo and surrounding districts.
Capri Holdings reports Q1 revenue decline
Accessories and footwear group Capri Holdings has reported a 6% year-on-year decrease in revenue from continuing operations for the first quarter of fiscal 2026.
Bringing in $797 million, the company, which owns fashion brands Michael Kors and Jimmy Choo, posted an adjusted earnings per share of $0.50, up from $0.16 in the same period last year.
Operating margin rose slightly to 2.0%, with adjusted operating margin at 2.5%. Capri said trends improved sequentially, and it remains focused on executing strategic initiatives ahead of the expected sale of its Versace business to Prada in the second half of 2025.
Revenue for Michael Kors fell by 5.9% and for Jimmy Choo by 6.4%, both on a reported basis. Capri expects to stabilise its business in the current fiscal year and return to growth in 2027.
CICB attends emergency tariff meeting in Brasília
Brazil’s national representative body for the tanning industry, CICB, has confirmed that hides, skins and leather will be among the products that face a tariff level of 50% if exported to the US.
CICB was one of a number of organisations with connections to agribusiness that attended a meeting in Brasília on August 4 with government ministers to discuss the matter.
Business leaders that took part in the meeting urged the Brazilian government to continue negotiating with the US to reverse its decision to impose the steep tariff level, or at least put it back to the previously announced level of 10%.
They also requested a series of emergency measures to help exporting companies cope with the immediate economic effect of losing market share in the US.
CICB asked for a series of specific measures to help the leather industry. These included a request that already agreed tax relief measures be paid quickly.
It also asked for a programme called Reintegra to be expanded. This initiative allows exporting companies to claim a tax refund; CICB suggested that the percentage companies can claim be increased to 3%.
Another request from CICB at the meeting was for the government to set up lines of credit for companies with the publicly owned BNDES development bank. It suggested companies could use the money as working capital and pay it back with low interest rates of between 1% and 4% per annum.
Finally, it asked the government to bring back and improve a programme called PSE to support employment.
“We want to find solutions to help the Brazilian leather sector remain competitive and a stand-out contributor in international markets,” CICB said after the meeting. “But we also want there to be a specific focus on maintaining and expanding the commercial partnerships we have established in the US because it is such an important market for the whole of the Brazilian economy.”
The 50% tariff rate took effect on August 6.
Revenue growth for Tyson, but margins are under pressure
Meat and wet blue producer Tyson has reported revenues of $40.6 billion for the first nine months of its current business year, the period ending June 28, 2025. This represents an increase of 0.5% year on year.
Beef contributed more than $16.1 billion to the total and remains the group’s biggest product category. Its revenues for beef for the nine-month period were up by 0.3% year on year.
Tyson said it expects an operating loss for its beef business this year. It quoted the US Department of Agriculture as saying domestic beef production will decrease in volume by around 2%.
AFRICA
Kenya: Kenanie Leather Park deal Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Investments, Trade and Industry Lee Kinyanjui has announced the signing of a Ksh 5 billion ($39 million) lease agreement to operationalise the Kenanie Leather Industrial Park in Machakos County.
The deal, signed on August 7 by the Kenya Leather Development Council (KLDC) and the Export Processing Zones Authority (EPZA), ends a decade-long delay in activating the 500-acre facility, which is equipped with tanneries, manufacturing warehouses, serviced plots, utilities, ICT systems and a common effluent treatment plant.
KLDC Board Chair Mohammed Adan, CEO Dr Issack Noor, EPZA Board Chairperson and CEOs Richard Cheruiyot and Richard Omelu signed on behalf of the two organisations.
According to the ministry, 36 investors are already lined up to take space in the park’s tanneries and warehouses. Once fully operational, the facility is expected to produce up to 10 million pairs of shoes per year, create more than 100,000 jobs, up from the current 17,000, and boost livestock farmers’ earnings.
Mr Kinyanjui said the move would stimulate local production, cut import costs and open up new export opportunities. He also urged the KLDC to work with slaughterhouses to improve hide and skin quality and reduce reliance on imports.
OCEANIA
Australian red meat exports rise in US
Australian red meat exports to the US rose sharply in early 2025, supported by steady
retail demand despite mixed economic conditions, according to Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA).
Beef exports were up 31% year-on-year, driven by strong growth in frozen grassfed (+55%) and chilled grainfed (+34%) volumes. Premium cuts also performed well. Lamb exports rose 5%, with Australia holding a 70% share of the US lamb market.
Australia has overtaken Brazil as the US’s leading beef supplier, offering a consistent, diverse range of products, including highervalue cuts. Retail demand for restaurantquality meat at home continues to support both foodservice and retail channels.
Ostrich leather exporters hope for breakthrough in US tariff talks
South Africa’s ostrich leather industry is awaiting the outcome of trade talks with the United States, with hopes that ostrich leather will be exempted from a 30% tariff set to come into effect on August 7, as reported by Cape Times.
The tariffs, first introduced under the Trump administration, could significantly affect exports from Oudtshoorn-based Cape Karoo International (CKI), which supplies ostrich leather to major US cowboy boot manufacturers including Justin Boot and Lucchese.
CKI says US sales account for around 20% of its leather exports. Managing director Francois de Wet said American manufacturers rely entirely on South African ostrich leather, as there is no domestic alternative.
The ostrich industry is a key economic contributor in South Africa’s Klein Karoo region, generating R578.8 million (US$32 million) in exports in 2021 across leather, meat, and feathers.
South African Ostrich Business Chamber CEO Piet Kleyn expressed confidence that a favourable agreement can still be reached. Talks between South African and US trade officials are continuing.
