19 April 2021

Learn more about how the Leather Working Group is actively working to improve traceability within the leather supply chain. 19 April 2021— For Immediate Release Download a PDF Copy Transparency and traceability within supply chains are critical, it allows actors positioned in different points in the value chain to have assurances that materials are responsibly sourced, with socio-environmental safeguards required by the marketplace, and they can provide their customers with reliable sustainability claims. Enhanced transparency and full traceability of all types of raw materials is a fundamental building block to ensure that inappropriate exploitation of...

06 April 2021

Join one of the Leather Working Group training webinars to learn more about the new traceability requirements in Protocol 7.0  The Leather Working Group will host two traceability-focused webinars on 19/20 April to provide more information on the new Incoming Material Traceability section of the LWG Leather Manufacturer Audit Protocol 7.0, published in February 2021.   Protocol 7.0 introduced a major change to how leather manufacturers are assessed and scored based on the level of traceability they can achieve and are able to demonstrate to an LWG Auditor. In response to growing demand for higher levels of transparency in the leather supply chain, LWG has...

06 April 2021

LANXESS becomes the next Supplier Representative on the LWG Executive Committee.  The Leather Working Group is pleased to announce that LANXESS has been voted in to join our Executive Committee — the decision-making body of the group. As a Supplier Member of LWG, LANXESS has been elected to represent the supplier sector, from chemical companies, to test houses, to machinery manufacturers, and more.   The previous supplier position on the EC was held by Stahl Holdings, represented by Michael Costello. Stahl was elected in 2017 and served a full 48-month term, during which time they led the LWG Supplier Sub-Group (SSG)...

06 April 2021

Improving chemical management in the leather industry with the LWG Leather Manufacturer Audit Protocol 7.0  After the launch of the LWG Leather Manufacturer Audit Protocol 7.0 (P7) in February 2021, the Leather Working Group hosted a set of webinars on chemical management in P7 on 24/25 March to provide tanneries more information on the new audit criteria.  Protocol 7.0 integrates the requirements of the LWG Chemical Management Module (CMM), making all chemical management criteria mandatory across all audits. As such, leather manufacturers are expected to demonstrate effective chemical management policies and systems,...

06 April 2021

The Leather Working Group (LWG) is pleased to announce the appointment of a new auditor based in Taiwan.  The Leather Working Group is pleased to welcome a new member of the LWG Auditing Team, Robert Sheng-Tsai Yu. He has joined us as an approved LWG Auditor, and will be working alongside the other LWG auditors and the LWG Team to deliver on-site and remote audits of leather manufacturers, traders, subcontractors, and commissioning manufacturers. Prior to his approval as an LWG Auditor, Robert has gained significant industry experience through working closely with various leather manufacturers in Taiwan, China, Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia in a consulting capacity...

31 March 2021

With growing demand for more environmentally friendly products and services, more businesses turn to sustainable leather made by responsible manufacturers. Today’s consumers are more mindful than ever before, and they expect the brands they purchase from to provide more —they want environmentally friendly products from ethical, transparent brands. And this trend doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.  As a result, the leather industry has been wrestling with the impact of leather production on the environment and how to address the challenges faced by most global supply chains in the modern age. But this isn’t a new consideration – global brands and...

01 March 2021

Join the Leather Working Group for our spring Virtual Member Conference this April! In lieu of our regular spring meeting — usually held in Hong Kong to coincide with the APLF Leather Fair — we will hold a Virtual Member Conference on 27 and 28 April 2021 via Zoom. The virtual session will run twice, first on Tuesday 27 April and the second on Wednesday 28 April 2021. Both sessions will cover the same content, to allow members across different regions and time-zones to attend.  The LWG Virtual Member Conference will give members a chance to learn more about LWG’s ongoing projects and...

01 March 2021

Want to take a deeper dive on some important changes in P7? Sign-up for one of our webinars today! Join us for a series of webinars that will take a deeper dive into some of the more significant changes to Protocol 7.0 – the newly released version of our flagship Leather Manufacturer audit standard. Focusing on key changes to the protocol, and addressing technical challenges across the leather industry, LWG will offer a series of virtual sessions delivered by technical experts. As P7 will officially go into use on 22 August 2021, the webinars are scheduled over the next six months. The LWG Webinar Series 2021 will feature the following...

01 March 2021

Traceability within the leather supply chain continues to be a crucial topic of discussion across the industry. Consumers want more transparency from the brands they purchase from, to ensure they can support and trust companies operating in a responsible manner.     Since 2008, LWG has included a traceability element within the LWG Leather Manufacturer Audit Protocol, originally added to assess a supplier’s ability to trace their material back to a slaughterhouse. The group then launched the LWG Trader Audit Protocol in 2016 to provide increased visibility across leather supply chain.   Most...

01 March 2021

If your organisation is a member of the LWG Animal Welfare Group (AWG), you’re invited to attend one of our virtual meetings on 4 March 2021. The AWG will host two online sessions to allow for attendance from all time-zones. The meetings will go over the output of the group for the 2020-21 half-year of membership and discuss next steps for 2021-22.    The agenda will include the following items:  An update on the AWG Animal Welfare Country Profiles   An update on the AWG Animal Welfare?Guide   Animal welfare policy examples  Changes to the...

18 February 2021

The Leather Working Group’s flagship environmental certification is evolving, with the release of an updated auditing standard for leather manufacturers, featuring more robust criteria and new social, traceability and chemical management requirements.  Covering approximately 25% of global finished leather production, and with over 680 leather manufacturers under LWG-certification already, the Leather Working Group represents the largest network of environmentally audited tanneries across the globe, providing brands with a responsible global supply chain.  Since...

01 February 2021

LWG will host webinars on the newest version of the LWG audit protocol for leather manufacturers on 24 & 25 February.  As we get ready to launch Version 7 of the LWG Environmental Audit Protocol (P7), it’s more important than ever that our membership understands the changes that are coming in the future.   P7 is due to be launch mid-February and will become mandatory 6 months later. Please be sure to download a copy of the protocol in our member area and review it in detail to understand all the changes.  P7 has been in development for several years, with the initial aim of integrating the LWG Chemical Management...