Background information
Fashion from the lab
by Vanessa Kim
This leather is made of silk
11.5.2021
From cattle breeding to tanning, the leather needed for a handbag travels a tremendous distance. Not only in terms of its carbon footprint. No wonder genuine leather alternatives are booming.
Leather is an ever-growing multi-billion dollar industry with a severe impact on the environment. Not only are countless cattle killed for this purpose, but the greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation and water pollution shouldn’t be underestimated neither. No wonder imitation leather is more in demand than ever. In addition to artificial leather made of plastic, the market now also offers vegetable leather made from mushrooms, cacti or apples. The latter are more environmentally friendly than real and synthetic leather.
Now, researchers at the U.S. Tuft University have developed a leather-like material made from silk proteins. Instead of weaving the silk into a fabric, the fibres from silkworm cocoons are broken down into their individual protein components. A gel-like substance is produced in the laboratory from these broken-down proteins by adding natural materials such as cellulose and chitosan – ingredients obtained from the shells of crustaceans. This substance is further processed into a leather-like material using 3D printing, which is in no way lesser to real leather in terms of feel and physical properties. The strength and flexibility of the leather alternative can be determined individually and the surface structure can also be adjusted. This also makes a kind of «suede» possible.
This biodegradable leather alternative sounds promising. Especially since products made from silk leather can be dissolved again if necessary, regenerated into their gel-like base material and printed into new products. In doing so, silk fibres of worn garments can potentially be reprocessed into shoes, for example.
It’s just a shame that silk leather isn’t vegan. After all, silkworms are still killed for the production of silk. For this reason, I still find the retort leather Mylo more promising, as it’s not only sustainable, but also vegan.
You can find a list of the best imitation leather according to the animal rights organisation PETA here.
Header images: Tufts University/Laia Mogas Soldevilla and Shutterstock
When I’m not exploring the depths of the sea as an open water diver, I enjoy plunging into the world of fashion. On the streets of Paris, Milan and New York is where I keep my eyes peeled for the latest trends. And I’ll show you how to take them from the catwalk to your everyday life.
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