Rethinking Leather by Daisy Wingate Saul.
Leather has long been one of fashion’s dirty secrets: a symbol of cruelty, greenhouse emissions, and chemical waste. But what if, instead of being part of the problem, leather could be part of the solution?
On Weston Park Farms in Hertfordshire, wildflowers sway between the hooves of cows raised on lush perennial pasture. Beneath them, the rich soil teems with life. This isn’t just a bucolic scene; it’s the front line of a material revolution, and the leather produced here tells a different story from that of the fashion industry’s usual tale of exploitation.
A small but growing movement in Britain is demonstrating that leather, when sourced from regenerative agriculture and finished using natural methods, can become one of the most sustainable materials in our wardrobes. The key? Rethinking everything, from how we raise animals to how we source, use and value leather.
Leather Isn’t the Enemy; the System Is.
Leather’s bad reputation is not unfounded. Much of it comes from grain-fed animals raised in industrial systems, chemically tanned overseas under poor labour and environmental standards. The tanning process alone often involves the use of heavy metals, significant water consumption, and the production of toxic effluents.
But the material itself isn’t inherently destructive. Leather is durable, repairable and biodegradable, qualities that many synthetic leathers lack. The real problem lies in the extractive systems behind most leather production and much of what we consume.
Regenerative agriculture flips that model on its head. Instead of depleting ecosystems, it restores them. Cattle are grazed in carefully planned rotations. Their manure feeds microbes and beetles, which in turn aerate the soil and recycle nutrients. Perennial pasture plants grow back stronger. Biodiversity thrives. This practice represents a systemic reimagining of land use, animal care and environmental repair that’s achievable. And it’s already underway here in the UK.
A New Kind of Supply Chain: From Pasture to Product
I recently attended Field Day, an event hosted by British Pasture Leather, a UK-based initiative founded by Alice Robinson and Sara Grady. Their hides are sourced exclusively from regenerative farms certified by Pasture for Life, where animals are 100% grass-fed and the land is treated as a living system.
Throughout the day, we follow the journey of leather from the soil to the studio. We begin with John Cherry, farmer of Weston Park Farms, alongside his brother and co-founder of the Groundswell Regenerative Agriculture Festival. In 2016, John swapped ploughs for no-till methods after a revelatory trip to Kansas, a conference he admits he dragged his reluctant wife to. “If those people sitting around in cowboy hats could do it,” he laughs, “then so could I.” His fields, now bursting with perennial plants like yarrow and ox-eye daisies, embody what he calls “working with the land, not against it.”
In a nearby field, Nikki Yoxall, a farmer herself and technical director at Pasture for Life, knelt in the grass and held up a handful of dark soil, with deeply rooted flowers and grasses dangling from it. “It’s not just about grass,” she says, “It’s about diversity.” Perennial plants with deep, varied root systems help retain water, keep the ground cool, and support one another in thriving under changing conditions. “If we want diverse, resilient landscapes, then having all of these different plants in them is going to allow for that, even in a changing climate”.
We lean in to catch the rich, muddy scent of the soil in her hands. “Perennial plants are left to grow,” she continues, “and the soil is rested between grazing.” This approach supports more robust ecosystems. It may even help lock carbon into the soil, though Nikki notes that research is ongoing, and more data will emerge over the next few years.
What is clear already is that this method produces healthier soil, tastier meat with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, and landscapes better able to withstand climate shifts.
And then we met Dr Claire Whittle, known as the “Regenerative Vet,” who took us even deeper, into the microscopic world of the cowpat. In that single, squelchy pat lies a thriving ecosystem: dung beetles, microbes, fungi, and larvae, all playing a vital role in soil health.
“There’s a whole city of life in there, like a night out in Liverpool,” she said, smiling. “One single cowpat can support over 1,000 insects, which means a single cow can sustain millions over a year.”
Beetles imbibe the nutrient-rich dung juice; flies and microbes feast with abandon. These insects not only improve the soil, they also serve as food for birds, endangered bats, and other species.
Beyond the Farm: Craft, Ethics, and Meaning
After lunch, cooked over an open flame by photographer-turned-fire-cooking chef Jason Lowe, we transitioned from the field to the factory. At Blenkinsop Leathers, one of the UK’s few remaining leather finishing houses, traditional techniques meet ethical sourcing. Here, hides are treated with care, not plasticised or painted over, but finished to preserve their natural character.
This is a crucial distinction. While industrial tanning often strips hides of their unique characteristics to create uniform products, regenerative finishing celebrates variation. Every hide tells the story of a place, a landscape and a life.
At British Pasture Leather’s studio next door, prototypes of belts, bags and accessories line the shelves. These aren’t seasonal trends; they’re long-lasting, meaningful objects.
Their newest collaboration with Gladstone/Hellen, a line of pasture leather belts designed by Ruby Creagh, embodies this ethos. The leather is soft, refined and unmistakably luxurious. But more than that, it’s accountable. You can trace it from soil to stitching.
Not Just a Product, A Proposition
We live in an era of greenwashing, where brands affix “eco” labels to products without proper scrutiny. Regenerative leather demands more, but it also offers us more.
By supporting leather made from pasture-raised cattle and finished by skilled craftspeople, we’re not just buying a belt or bag; we’re investing in a better system. One that supports soil health, animal welfare, local economies and traditional skills that are at risk of being lost, despite being practices that actively contribute to ecological restoration. It turns a by-product of ethical meat production into a long-lasting material.
The Choice Is Ours
So, what kind of fashion future do we want?
One built on speed, sameness and synthetic alternatives that still rely on shady and planet-destroying practices? Or one rooted in craft, ecology, and care?
Fashion doesn’t need to abandon leather altogether. It just needs to abandon the systems that make leather destructive. Regenerative leather isn’t some distant ideal; it already exists and we just need to choose it.
