A VEGETABLE TANNING STORY
Vegetable tanning has origins in prehistory and in Tuscany has reached its greatest expression. For centuries, the Tuscan master tanners have handed down the precious artisan tradition, which today is a combination of ancient recipes and advanced technology. The tanneries associated with the consortium, heirs of experience and centuries-old knowledge, still carry out with care and passion the slow process that transforms the raw hides into leather, with total respect for nature. It is a process based on the use of natural tannins from trees and plants, aided by innovative new technologies and the slow passage of time.
Among the various tanning methods, vegetable tanning is the most traditional and recognizable. It imparts highly characteristic intrinsic properties to leather, determining a wide range of applications and uniqueness of the product. Vacchetta leather does not lie, it is not afraid to be the testimony of the passage of time.
The vegetable-tanning process is based on the use of tannins, the active ingredient responsible for the transformation of the animal hide into a compact and resistant material. Tannins can be found in many different trees and plants, in variable concentrations according to the different species. These natural tannin extracts make vegetable-tanned leather unique and easily distinguishable.
Vegetable-tanned leather embodies the experience of our life. It matures over time, a rare material that actually improves with age and use. It is precisely these changes and personalization that testify to the naturalness of the product. The innate colors of the tannins give warm tones to the leather, which tend to intensify with the passage of time and daily use.
Choosing a product made of Tuscan Vegetable-Tanned Leather means choosing a one-of-a-kind object that uniquely reflects the owner’s values and lifestyle.
No leather is exactly the same as any other, its intrinsic characteristics offer a wide range of possible interpretations in shape and design. Designers find a material capable of adding value to their project, consumers find a product that transcends fast fashion and trends, gaining value with the passing of time.
No animal is killed for its skin. On the contrary, the raw hides used by our tanneries are the discarded by-products of the food industry producing meat for human consumption which otherwise would have a notable environmental impact on their disposal.
Starting with a natural and renewable material, tanned with natural tannins, a vegetable-tanned leather object can biodegrade at the end of its lifecycle, thanks to its chemical-biological characteristics.
Many of the substances used during the tanning process are recovered, recycled, and reused in different fields. Hair removed from raw hides is transformed into agricultural fertilizer; sludge produced by the depuration plants is repurposed for use as construction material.
Tuscan vegetable-tanned leather, recognizable by its trademark, does not contain any toxic substances such as azo-dyes, nickel, PCP or chrome VI, harmful not only to man but also to the environment.
