If you’ve been in this space for a while, you might have heard the term “LCA”. But what is one, and why does it matter?

A life cycle assessment (LCA) is a detailed way to measure the environmental impact of a material from start to finish. It looks at the whole process, taking into account everything from raw materials and their supply chains, to production methods, product usage and ultimately, its end-of-life. This paints a clear picture of things like carbon emissions, water usage and waste. The resulting data helps us make comparisons to see if and how biomaterials excel beyond traditional options. This is critical for things such as ESG reporting and gaining certifications.

It’s important to note that this is an early LCA conducted to help us identify areas for improvement and that it is still to be peer reviewed. Our results are extremely positive when taking into account the impact of our material compared to animal and PU/PVC leathers. 

Our LCA results show that Alt. Leather is:

• Better than both animal and synthetic leathers across almost every impact category.
• Highly climate-efficient, especially when powered by renewables.

The LCA looks at many points of impact. Here are some key indicators that highlight the benefits of Alt. Leather.

Alt. Leather shows:

• About 3× lower emissions than animal leather, and about 35–45% lower than synthetics (PU/PVC).
• About 55–65% less energy usage than PU/PVC leather, and about 60–70% less than animal leather.
• About 50-55% lower water impact than animal leather.
• 5× lower nutrient pollution (eutrophication) than animal leather.
• Concerning particulate matter, a lower human health impact across all categories.

Here’s where it gets interesting:

• Although our land use is comparable to that of animal leather, this is simply because we are using plant-based ingredients, we are still avoiding the intensive methane and water footprint of animal agriculture.
• On the other hand, synthetic leathers (PU/PVC) use less land but rely heavily on fossil fuels and pose greater toxicity risks than our 100% petroleum-plastic free option.

In conclusion, Alt. Leather has a dramatically lower impact than conventional leather options. We are an overall cleaner and safer choice since we avoid toxic tanning processes (like chromium) and create far less waterborne pollution than animal leather and create less particulate matter across all types of leather.

The hard work doesn’t stop there. Each day at Alt. we’re improving and refining our material.

Whether you’re an impact investor or a brand that cares about people, planet or animals, now is the perfect time to join us to create real positive impact for the world. Our LCA data is unmistakably sound, but we haven’t reached our goal yet, and we need you to take it from lab to life.