Leather: Animals Abused And Killed for Their Skins
Every year, the global leather industry slaughters more than a billion animals and tans their skins and hides. 1 Many of these animals endure all the horrors of factory farming—including extreme crowding and confinement, deprivation, and unanesthetized castration, branding, and tail-docking—as well as cruel treatment during transport and slaughter. Everything but the Moo The multibillion-dollar meat industry profits from more than just animals’ flesh. The coproducts of meat consumption include fat and blood that are used in livestock feed, tires, explosives, paints, and cosmetics; organs that are used in pet food; and heart valves that are used in medicine. 2,3 The skin of the animal is often considered to be a significant economic co-product of the meatpacking industry. 4 When the milk production of cows in the dairy industry declines, their skin is made into leather. The hides of their calves, who are frequently raised for veal, are made into high-priced calfskin. ...