Leather made from cactus? No joke (er, poke)! The only houseplant you managed to keep alive all year is also versatile enough to be a vegan leather.
Cactus leather is celebrated for its breathability and supposed sustainability, meaning it’s making its way into upholstery, shoes, handbags, and apparel. Mercedes Benz uses it for some of their E-car interiors, and fast fashion giant H&M offers cactus leather in their kids’ clothing line.
But just what is this futuristic sounding fabric and is making leather from cactus something worth celebrating from a sustainability perspective?
It’s a prickly subject, but we won’t desert you. Instead, we’ll guide you through how to make cactus leather, how it compares to other leathers, and what the future of its industry might have in store.
Contents: Vegan Cactus Leather Sustainability
- What Is Cactus Leather Material? Jump to section
- How Is Cactus Leather Made? Jump to section
- Who Makes Cactus Leather? Jump to section
- Is Desserto Cactus Leather Sustainable? Jump to section
- Is Cactus Leather Better Than Leather? Jump to section
- What Brands Use Cactus Leather? Jump to section
What Is Cactus Leather Material?
That new vegan handbag might pair perfectly with your latest thrifted outfit, but what is a cactus leather purse exactly? What’s it made out of?
To risk stating the obvious, it’s leather made out of cactus—specifically the Nopal (Opuntia Ficus Indica) or prickly pear cactus. It grows with minimal water in abundance around the world, particularly in Mexico and Australia, where it grows in such excess that it’s considered an invasive species.
Both the paddles (AKA leaves) and the fruit of the Nopal cactus are mainstays in the Mexican diet, where it’s primarily harvested for leather. That means that it’s a byproduct of the food industry, so you can think of making vegan leather from cactus as a sort of cactus recycling process.
How Is Cactus Leather Made?
Nopal cacti have two harvests annually, which is when the large, mature cactus paddles are cut. This is accomplished without destroying the plant, making Nopal cacti sustainable plants that are harvestable long-term.
The cactus paddles are washed and crushed into tiny pieces, which are laid in the sun to dry over several days. Fibers are then separated from the dried up mulch after sun-drying.
Next, a powdered protein is extracted, which is brought to a laboratory and mixed with different non-toxic formulas and natural, sustainable dyes to create a bio-resin solution. This resin is then poured onto a “carrier material”, such as organic cotton, recycled cotton, recycled polyester, other types of plastic, or a blend. Bonded together, these become leather-like materials.
Given that some of these carriers are more sustainable than others, it’s important to check what a brand’s Nopal leather is made with. For example, organic cotton will be far more sustainable than any carrier made of synthetic fabrics.
Who Makes Cactus Leather?
It was the plastic pollution crisis that first catapulted Desserto founders into the desert to explore sustainable materials from Mexico’s ever-abundant cacti. They sought to rival conventional leather, and poked their way to the top of the sustainable fashion industry with a plant-based and breathable animal leather alternative.
After two years of intense research and development to maximize product quality, the inventors debuted the innovative material at Milan’s leather fair Lineapelle in 2019. Since then, Desserto has won countless awards and accolades, been featured in the world’s most iconic luxury magazines, and partnered with big brands like Adidas and Givenchy.
As of now, Desserto is the only cactus leather manufacturer worldwide.
The number of sustainability certifications held by the company are impressive, and include OEKO-TEX, Global Recycled Standard (GRS), USDA Organic, USDA Biobased, ISO 9001, and PETA-approved vegan.
Does that mean cactus skin leather is sustainable, truly? Or so we need to look out for greenwashing as green as the cactus leaves leather is made from?
Is Desserto Cactus Leather Sustainable?
The animal leather industry is as big as a cow—estimated at over $200 billion. The environmental footprint required to raise animals is at a breaking point on this planet. It’s said that for every hamburger (or leather wallet), a square hectare of the Amazon is cut down since more than 200 million cattle now graze there.
Then there’s the animal cruelty AND worker cruelty factors, thanks to the leather tanning process, which spews chemicals into waterways and exposes tannery workers to a gamut of carcinogenic chemicals.
Meanwhile, vegan alternatives can have an environmental impact that’s not much better, considering virgin plastic for “pleather” is usually petroleum-based (often PVC, the worst type of plastic).
Given all that, it’s easy to see why Desserto leather is a step up on the sustainability scale. In fact, they provide a Life Cycle Assessment comparing the different inputs of their leather, animal leather, and PVC leather. To highlight some examples, where real leather requires 32.95 m3 of water per m2 of leather, cactus leather requires only 0.02 m3. For the same m2 of leather, Desserto’s cradle-to-gate GHG emissions are just 1.39kg compared to animal leather’s 27.30kg.
Sustainability Of Nopal Cactus Farming
The Nopal cactus is fast-growing and doesn’t require much water (or any pesticides) to thrive. It’s usually grown in arid environments and tolerates drought, which is excellent for water conservation. It’s also a reliable source of income for local farmers.
On the flipside, the prickly pear cactus is so hardy and adaptable that it’s a problem. In Ethiopia and Australia, it now edges out animal grazing areas.
That said, the cactus scores points for sequestering carbon—this means it can help mitigate excess carbon dioxide on our planet and slow the effects of climate change. The prickly pear cactus removes CO2 from the atmosphere and stores it inside itself. Carbon sequestration means the cactus soil is carbon-rich and fertile for growing, and the plant inherently promotes regenerative agriculture.
On Desserto’s 14 acres of organic cactus plantations, they absorb 8,100 tons of CO2 annually, while only generating 15.30 tons of CO2.
Sustainability Of Desserto Cactus Leather
Desserto’s growing process is certified organic, and they only use rainwater for their plants. Because the sun’s power is harnessed in the drying process rather than heat-based or mechanical means, it’s considered eco-friendly and energy-efficient.
What makes Nopal leather better than most similar vegan fabrics is that it is not only waterproof, but also breathable. Plus, unlike some other vegan alternative leathers, Desserto® claims their materials are free of toxic chemicals, phthalates and PVC.
But there is some plastic involved. While Desserto’s leather (in its best form) is made of 95% organic carbon content (up from 92% just a year ago), polyurethane is used as a coating to add waterproofing and general durability. Fortunately, Desserto uses a newer form of biodegradable polyurethane (PU) combined with organic dyes. According to the brand, any byproduct is organic and goes toward animal feed.
Then there’s the backing, which can range from synthetics to natural fibers. Recycled polyester or recycled cotton are common, but only the latter would make that vegan cactus leather wallet as natural as it purports to be.
Is Cactus Leather Biodegradable?
Here’s where things get prickly: we’re not actually sure.
Per Desserto’s FAQ page, it is “partially biodegradable under anaerobic thermophilic conditions. The biodegradation percentage varies from material to material depending on its formulation”.
While Desserto mandates transparency, the public isn’t told what makes it not fully biodegrade or how long it would take to break down. No one knows exactly what is in the patented secret formula. It must mean some inorganic substance is used, and we can’t be sure it doesn’t contain some other bio-plastic. Until either more innovation or more transparency, consider it neither biodegradable or compostable.
However, thet do claim it can be chemically or mechanically recycled, though it doesn’t appear Desserto themselves currently offer any kind of recycling program and because they are the material’s only maker, it’s unlikely any other company would be able to do so.
Is Cactus Leather Better Than Leather?
It’s not new news that the leather industry is fraught with injustice. From the mistreatment of animals (who must be killed) to the methane gas released from raising said animals—which is 25x times as potent CO2 and alone accounts for 20% of global emissions—to the toxic chemicals like chromium and arsenic used in tanneries, leather is highly problematic.
Cactus leaf leather is not chemical intensive, is vegan and cruelty-free, is plant-based, reduces atmospheric carbon, rather than adding to it.
In terms of biodegradability, they’re comparable. While leather is technically natural, it takes so long to break down that it might as well not be. Plus, the tanning chemicals used will pollute anything that is degrades into.
One of the main arguments in favor of animal leather is that despite its shortcomings, however, it has one of the longest lifespans of all textiles.
Cactus leather’s durability is rated at about 10 years. While leather’s lifespan is still longer, provided you take care of those cactus leather boots, all manner of cactus leather products should at least last long enough to make them worth your while.
What Brands Use Cactus Leather?
Designers and cactus leather brands are drawn to the innovative material because it’s relatively eco-friendly while still being durable and easy to clean (just some mild soap and water). Brands offering everything from footwear to bags made from cactus include:
- Amour Vert: They currently offer a vegan cactus leather jacket.
- Bohema
- Carmona Collection: Not only do they offer vegan cactus leather shoes, but they’re made in Mexico, where Desserto leather is also produced.
- CLAE Shoes
- Everlane
- Frida Rome
- SENTIENT
- Thalie
The main impediment to popularizing the material is its price point. Hopefully, more cost-effective ways to create organic or recycled carrier materials will eventually bring down its cost.