07 December 2020

Version 7 of the LWG Environmental Audit Protocol is anticipated for launch in Q1 of 2021, introducing new requirements for tanners. The Leather Working Group (LWG) is confident that the next iteration of its keystone auditing standard will be ready for launch in Q1 2021. Version 7.0 (P7) of the LWG Environmental Audit Protocol has been under development by the LWG Technical Sub-Group (TSG) for most of 2020, with input from ZDHC and NWF in specific areas. Some of the key changes to the protocol include: Chemical Management The previously separate LWG Chemical Management Module (CMM) will be integrated throughout the protocol, including additional questions on the monitoring and...

08 December 2020

Sign up to join the Leather Naturally webinar, where they will introduce the METCHA campaign On 16 December 2020, Leather Naturally will present a webinar to introduce the METCHA campaign. Leather Naturally is a not-for-profit industry members association, focused on promoting and educating designers, creators and consumers of leather as a material. In 2019, Leather Naturally launched METCHA, a digital platform and global marketing campaign aimed at Millennials and members of Gen Z. METCHA covers a wide range of news and developments related to leather in the fashion, art and lifestyle sectors. The platform highlights the value and importance of leather as a material, making use...

07 December 2020

The ZDHC will host a virtual conference for manufacturers based in East Asia this December. Attention all leather manufacturers based in East Asia! Register now for the ZDHC East Asia Regional Conference to learn more about the ZDHC Gateway, and many other topics, such as: Where is ZDHC today & what’s next? Will sustainability be relevant for the chemical, textile, fibre, PU and leather industry from 2020 onwards? Roadmap to Zero Programme update including but not limited to ZDHC MRSL, Chemical Management System (CMS), Supplier to Zero, Wastewater Guidelines. ZDHC Programme Implementation Challenges & Best Practices Improving your understanding of the...

07 December 2020

The Leather Working Group announced plans to include a requirement for a social audit into the LWG Environmental Audit Protocol during the October member meeting. LWG held a set of two webinars focused on social auditing and future plans to recognise existing social certifications over 25th and 26th November 2020. Delivered by Peter Hughes, the virtual sessions gave an overview of the need for social auditing across the supply chain, a review of the most widely used social standards in the leather industry, and an update on how LWG plans to incorporate them into future iterations of the LWG Environmental Audit Protocol. Introduction to Social Auditing Ensuring workers are...

07 December 2020

The Leather Working Group held the inaugural meeting of the Traceability Working Group on 25th November 2020, attended by LWG Members across the leather supply chain. As the Leather Working Group continues to grow and expand its scope, traceability becomes an ever more important issue for our membership. In fact, traceability was ranked as one of the top five priorities for future development in the 2020 LWG Member Survey. As such, this year has seen us commit to including new and stricter traceability requirements in our audit protocols as a means of encouraging leather manufacturers to improve their efforts in this area. In addition, we launched the LWG Traceability Working Group...

07 December 2020

The LWG office will be closed over 24th December 2020 to 1st January 2021. We would like to thank all of our members and external partners for their continued support for LWG over what has been a challenging year for most industries.  The main LWG office will be closed from Thursday 24th December and will reopen on Monday 4th January 2021. We are looking forward to continuing to work with all of our members and key stakeholders across the industry in 2021, and wish you all a relaxing festive season. Christmas & New Year Opening Hours Monday 21st December 2020   Open Tuesday 22nd December...

03 December 2020

Suppliers across the leather supply chain met virtually in early December to discuss key issues across the sector. The LWG Supplier Sub-Group (SSG) is comprised of supplier members of the group, featuring from chemical companies most prominently, but also including machinery suppliers, testing houses and other technical experts. The group aims to provide guidance to the LWG Technical Sub-Group and Executive Committee on supplier-related issues and has previously assisted in the development of the LWG Chemical Management Module (CMM). Over 40 individuals representing supplier members of LWG met virtually on Wednesday 2nd December 2020. Currently, the integration of the LWG Chemical...

30 November 2020

Learn more about the newly developed LWG Marketing Claims Framework on how to communication about LWG to your customers. The Leather Working Group has developed a formal process for brands and retailers to follow when talking to consumers about LWG, to ensure all claims are accurate and transparent. As such, we will host webinars to go through the current draft of the framework in detail in December 2020. The LWG Marketing Claims Framework has been developed over 2020 to give Brand/Retailer Members clear guidance on how to communicate about the Leather Working Group, what membership to the group means, and how sourcing from LWG-certified manufacturers is beneficial. Scheduled to go...

09 November 2020

Following the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the LWG began granting 3-month certificate extensions in late February 2020. After which, when it was clear that the global situation was worsening, all leather manufacturers that were currently under certification received a 12-month extension from mid-May. The timelines now indicate that re-audits are due to re-start shortly, while travel to many countries is still not possible. Fortunately, LWG can now offer a temporary solution for when travel restrictions exist and there is no auditor present in the same country as the leather manufacturer wishing to be re-audited. This solution will be temporary and is effective from when it was...

09 November 2020

Next up in the LWG Webinar Series is an online training on the topic of Social Auditing within the context of leather manufacturing and related facilities. As the LWG will be introducing a social auditing requirement as part of the LWG certification in the next iterations of the protocol, we have organised this webinar to introduce this topic to our members. The webinar will cover current elements that are considered during a social audit and provide a review of existing standards.  To date, the LWG Webinar Series has offered training on the following topics:  Audit...

09 November 2020

The LWG Executive Committee welcomes new EC members Adidas and Industria del Curtido (INCUSA) to represent the Brand/Retailer and Leather Manufacturer membership respectively. For our outgoing members, Sadesa and Clarks, we thank you for your hard work and contribution to the group and welcome your continued engagement.  Furthermore, as a result of Daniel Gordon’s departure, a new Chair has been elected by the existing members of the committee. We sincerely thank Daniel for his time and dedication over the past four years. As the new Chairman of the EC, we are happy...

09 November 2020

All LWG-certified leather manufacturers will be granted free access to the ZDHC Gateway - Chemical Module 9 November 2020 - Northampton, UK & Amsterdam, The Netherlands The Leather Working Group (LWG) and the ZDHC Foundation have agreed to provide free access to the ZDHC Gateway for all leather manufacturers currently holding a valid LWG audit certification. The access to the ZDHC Gateway will support the leather manufacturers to implement the ZDHC Manufacturing Restricted Substances List (ZDHC MRSL) and further streamline implementation efforts of the industry, including manufacturers, brands and chemical companies. Christina Trautmann, LWG Operations Manager, said:...