4/27/2023

For the apple juice manufacturing industry, the leftover apple residue is considered waste, resulting in significant resource waste every year. Rise of Apple Leather .

"Apple leather" is a bio-based leather substitute made from this apple waste, serving as a form of secondary utilization.

However, its level of environmental friendliness may not be as high as expected because, apart from the organic components, apple leather shoes contain 50% polyurethane (PU). Fabrics are necessary to support the body's weight, meaning chemical products are unavoidably used in the production process.

With the current production process, only about 20-30% of the material in apple leather products is composed of apples, and the amount of pollution produced during production remains unknown.

However, the obstacles facing the rise apple leather go beyond this. Brands that own apple leather products can hardly meet large-scale orders due to insufficient raw materials. Currently, most of the purchased apple by-products come from Europe, where food waste infrastructure can better handle food scraps. Moreover, the limited factory production and fewer dye options result in higher production costs for apple leather products compared to non-apple leather ones.