When it comes to innovation in textiles, biodegradability is a balancing act. No one wants a material that disintegrates with a few months’ use, but equally, we don’t want that pair of boots to hang around for the next 1,000 years. Degradability is a spectrum, but breaking down under the right conditions in a suitable time frame is not the only objective here. The other question is: what is it degrading into? Many materials marketed as sustainable may break down into microplastics or residues that linger in soil and water systems. Alt. Leather’s 100% bio-based material degrades within six months into pure compost that has no adverse effects on soil life.

Through independent testing by the University of Newcastle in Australia, our material has been shown to fully break down into compost within six months under industrial composting conditions. Zero petroleum-derived plastics, toxins or leachates were detected after our material degraded (and to be clear, being a 100% bio-based solution means that we leave out petrochemicals from the start). Once the six months are up, the compost is mixed into soil and rigorous ecotoxicity testing is carried out using worms and seedling germination. 

Worms are critical little creatures that enable the health of soil by eating and recycling nutrients, improving soil structure with their burrowing and by spreading around the micro-organisms that process pollutants. If worms aren’t present, our soil suffers, so we are thrilled that Alt. Leather’s compost showed no negative effects on the health and reproductive systems of worms. Seedlings also thrived in the Alt. Leather mixture, showing equally strong germination results in our and the control sample (see image below).

How does Alt. Leather’s compostability compare with other leathers? For animal leather, it’s not a straightforward answer since there are varying methods of tanning and finishing which affect the way they break down. However, most animal leather has been found to degrade in 10 to 12 months. Many animal leathers today are chromium tanned (up to 90%) and coated in petroleum-derived plastic like polyurethane (PU), which means they may contaminate soil with these harmful chemicals upon degradation.

PU and PVC (polyvinyl chloride) leather, being made purely from petroleum (fossil) plastics, can take more than 400 years to degrade, not to mention the toxins they release into the environment. Partially bio-based leather alternatives that incorporate petroleum plastics also have to contend with this issue. At Alt. Leather, we’ve been committed to avoiding petroleum products since day one, and we’re proud to be one of the few 100% bio-based leather alternatives around today.

Industrial composting is a carefully managed biological process that creates the right conditions for microbes to break down materials efficiently. Facilities maintain high temperatures (50–70 °C) to accelerate decomposition and kill pathogens, while ensuring plenty of oxygen through aeration or pile turning to prevent methane-producing anaerobic conditions. Moisture is balanced at about 40–60%, much like a wrung-out sponge, so microbes stay active. Feedstocks (that would include our leather alternative!) are shredded and blended to achieve the right carbon-to-nitrogen ratio, and over a period of about 2–6 months, followed by a resting stage that allows the compost to fully mature, the material transforms into stable compost.

While industrial composting infrastructure is still growing globally, the momentum is clear. Many cities and countries already run industrial composting programs, especially in Europe, parts of North America, Australia/New Zealand, and affluent urban areas in Asia. For instance, in the U.S., the number of households with municipal food-waste collection climbed from ~10 million in 2021 to 14.9 million in 2023. 

Textile regulations around the world are increasingly focused on sustainability and circularity. While acceptance of materials beyond food and garden waste (i.e textiles, and therefore leather alternatives) is not yet a reality, we expect the current trend to lead there. When these systems are in place at scale, Alt. Leather will be ready to fit in.

For brands, using industrially compostable materials positions products at the forefront of this shift. As industrial composting infrastructure grows, compostable textiles offer a future-ready route for end-of-life disposal, while also building trust (if you’re transparent about how the material should be disposed of) with consumers.

Looking forward, we are working with brands to understand other end-of-life pathways that will work for their consumers, such as recycling. We are currently testing upcycling with a local Australian company that recycles textiles into other products like acoustic wall panelling and insulation.