Many of us enjoy leather, but in reality – leather is not good for the environment. According to PETA, the global leather industry kills more than a billion animals for their skin and hides.
In addition to the fact that leather derives from animals that have been killed for their hides, the leather is treated with chemicals which cause the leather to become non-biodegradable.
Even the fake leather that many people enjoy using (thinking that it isn’t derived after killing an animal) is actually made from plastic that doesn’t really solve the waste problem. However, two entrepreneurs — Adrián López Velarde and Marte Cázarez, have found something that is truly amazing!
The company is called Adriano Di Marti and they have formulated a new technique to create a leather type fabric using cactus leaves called Desserto. Cactus, known for its rugged nature is quite hard and thick and pointy, however, when fully processed, it feels and looks just like leather!
In addition to the incredible likeness of leather, the company has adopted natural dyes for processing the leather that doesn’t really impact the environment while making the material long for as long as a decade. The fabric is available in a series of colors too. And since it is made from a plant, it is partially biodegradable.
In addition to being organic and eco-friendly, this ‘cactus’ leather is roughly the same price as tradition leather. And animals don’t have to die in order to get it! The creators have been able to fabricate car seats, bags, shoes and even apparels using the material. How cool!