![]() ![]() The United States is the largest producer of hides (from larger animals such as cattle) and skins (from smaller animals such as lambs) with an annual supply of more than 1.1 million tons. With the low profit margin for each head of cattle (about $3 a head), the meat industry relies heavily on skin sales to remain profitable. More than 139 million cows, calves, sheep, lambs, and pigs are killed for food each year, and skin accounts for roughly 50% of the total byproduct value of cattle. Until refrigeration was perfected at the turn of the twentieth century, beef was largely a byproduct. But what if you learned that some leather items are actually made with the skin of those same best friends? And what if you knew that leather is so much more that just a “byproduct” of the meat industry? ![]() Some of our best friends - dogs, cats, and horses - even boast leather leashes, collars, and saddles. Brushed off as a “byproduct” of another industry, leather (or, more appropriately, “hairless fur”) seems to be everywhere, from shoes, belts, wallets, bags, and briefcases, to car seats, sofas, and footballs. That’s a lot of suffering for something as frivolous as a fur collar, especially when so many beautiful, stylish, and humane alternatives are available.Įven greater in the number of animals killed, however, is a material few recognize as cruel. It’s estimated that 90% of today’s cage-raised fox is used for fur trim. Few people today flaunt full-length fur coats that took the lives of 35 minks to make, but even fewer people recognize that 3 foxes suffered just the same to make a fur-trim collar. Most people are aware that fur comes from animals who were either cruelly trapped or miserably raised in tiny barren cages. ![]()
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