01 February 2021

Leather manufacturers can now access an online training portal designed to support them in their journey towards environmental best practice.  The Leather Working Group (LWG) has launched a new online training platform designed to educate leather manufacturers and other members of the leather supply chain on responsible operating practices.   The LWG Tannery of the Future self-assessment has been developed by the Leather Working Group and supported by the Solidaridad Network. Solidaridad is also part of the decision-making sub-group for the development of the tool, to provide crucial insight and experience from an...

01 February 2021

The annual LWG Member Survey is a crucial tool in determining our future strategy.  Our annual Member Survey opened for responses from member companies on 25 January. It’s more important than ever that we get feedback from our membership across the leather sector, to make sure we’re moving in the right direction.   You will be pleased to hear that 2020 was a busy year for the LWG. Based on your feedback, we made some significant developments in the audit protocol:  integrating chemical management  increasing the importance of traceability and introducing scoring,  adding a new...

01 February 2021

Following the release of the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines for Leather, ZDHC will host webinars to introduce the guidelines and provide information and how to use them.   ZDHC will also give some detail on the changes to the Sampling and Analysis Plan (SAP) and highlight the importance on completing supplier profiles in the ZDHC Gateway.  The two webinars are open to all and free to attend. They will be both be held on Wednesday 10 February 2021, at two different times to account for variation in time-zone. To register, please visit the links below:  10 February 2021 – 08:00am -...

01 February 2021

Leather manufacturers can begin their journey to P7 compliance with a chemical management tool, such as the ZDHC Performance InCheck Report  With the release of the next version of the LWG Environmental Audit Protocol (P7) around the corner, leather manufacturers will be expected to demonstrate additional chemical management good practice, complying with the ZDHC MRSL for leather as a minimum.   In November 2020, we announced that all LWG-certified leather manufacturers would be able to access the ZDHC Gateway – Chemical Module free of charge. Now, ZDHC have...

01 February 2021

We’ve recently received some reports of fraudulent emails being sent to our members impersonating a member of the Leather Working Group team.   We’re aware of at least two versions of these fraudulent communications, both of which contain requests related to invoices and payment information. The signatures of these emails identify a “Tobby Diassy” and a “Diane Flannery” – neither of these individuals work for LWG. It is possible that other names have also been used.   The intent of this email is to steal personal or business-related information and to redirect the payment of your...

27 January 2021

Press Release PDF download The Leather Working Group has achieved their thousandth member company from across the leather supply chain.  The Leather Working Group (LWG) announces a membership milestone, as their one thousandth member company has just joined the group. Established in 2005, the LWG was created as a non-profit organization, where brands and leather manufacturers collaborate to drive environmental best practice in leather production and sourcing.  “Reaching this milestone is a significant achievement that reinforces LWG’s...

11 January 2021

We’ll host webinars on the digital version of the ‘LWG Tannery of the Future – Are You Ready for an Audit?’ tool. The Leather Working Group will host two webinars in late January to promote the launch of the digital version of the LWG Tannery of the Future assessment.  Going live in early February, the virtual tool will allow tanneries to complete a self-assessment of their manufacturing operations and business practices on a range of different metrics. The digitisation of the tool will help ensure it gets into the hands of those that would...

11 January 2021

APLF has launched three virtual events for the tanning industry in China, India, Africa and the Middle East. The Virtual APLF events will take place in late January and early February, to bring together members from across the leather supply chain to showcase their products and services to specific markets. In particular, the digital platform will feature suppliers from the chemical, machinery, raw hide/ skins and footwear components sectors. In addition, companies offering testing services and accreditation will present at the events on operations within the tanning industry. Once registered for the virtual event, attendees will receive log in details for the online APLF...

11 January 2021

Renewals for the 2021-22 LWG membership year will begin towards the end of January. The Leather Working Group will begin the renewals process for the next membership year towards the end of this month. The next membership year will begin on 1st April 2021 and will run until 31st March 2022.   All current subscription members of the group (including brands, retailers, suppliers, associations, and agent traders) will receive an invoice in late January to ensure the renewals process is completed before the start of our next membership year.  We are pleased to confirm that our membership subscription fees will remain flat...

11 January 2021

Our annual member survey, a key tool in putting together our annual strategy, will open for responses in late January.  The 2021 LWG Membership Survey will be opened in late January for responses from our member companies. The Membership Survey is a crucial resource for our core team, allowing us to set up the strategy for the group over the next 12 months. The survey is also one of the key feedback mechanisms for our members to provide their input every year.   LWG operates on the principle of 1 company = 1 vote. As such, only the “Voting Contact” for each company will receive an invitation to complete the survey. If you believe you...

08 January 2021

Following the launch of the LWG Subcontractor Audit, the Leather Working Group will phase out the ‘Mini Audit’ in favour of mandatory subcontractor certification. By mid-2022, the Leather Working Group will require all subcontractors used by LWG-audited leather manufacturers to obtain their own certification via the LWG Subcontractor Audit. Launched late in 2020, the LWG Subcontractor Audit Protocol was designed to directly assess and certify companies completing subcontracting operations on behalf of third parties. Once assessed, a subcontractor’s environmental performance can be taken into account when their customers are audited via the LWG Environmental Audit...

07 January 2021

Guest Contributor: Stephen Sothmann (Leather and Hide Council of America) In recent months, there have been multiple articles in popular media outlets questioning leather’s status as a byproduct of meat or dairy production. Although his is still sometimes a misunderstood concept, when examining the evidence, it is quite clear that hides are indeed a byproduct of these food-producing systems.  To support this statement, this article uses the USA as a case study and provides independent, verifiable facts, sourced from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) about the economics of a hide in cattle and beef production. It will affirm the status of the hide (and thus,...