July 14, 2021

Leather and Hide Weekly

 

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LHCA released a new video underscoring the harm caused to the environment by replacing natural hides with plastics and other materials. The video empirically demonstrates how hides are the sustainable material choice and how discarding them has deleterious consequences for the environment. Also, the Biden Administration issued a sweeping Executive Order addressing consolidation and other perceived anti-competitive features in numerous industries, including maritime shipping. More on these and other topics below.

 

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Weekly Hides and Skins Stats 

  • Net sales of cured cattle hides reported for the period ending July 1, 2021, were 397,400 pieces and net sales of wet blue were 121,000 pieces. Reported shipments of cured hides were 385,400 and of wet blue were 118,400. China was the largest buyer of cured hides and Italy was the largest buyer of wet blue. See more. For historical data, click here. 
  • U.S. Cattle Slaughter was 582,000 last week, a decrease of 7 percent from the previous week. Total cattle slaughter in 2021 is 17,290,000 head, up 4.9 percent from the same period in 2020. See more.
  • USDA AMS Major Packer Hide Price Report provided prices for five types of hide at five price points, with a spread of $21 for branded southwest cows to $57 for butt branded steers. See more.

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Industry Updates

  • The National GS1 Traceability Advisory Group is hosting a virtual open industry briefing session titled, "Global Traceability and Sustainability for Textiles and Leather." The webinar, which will be held July 20, 2021, will discuss how improving transparency and traceability has become a priority for the textile and leather industries to manage value chains more effectively, identify and address labor and human rights violations, combat counterfeits, reduce environmental impacts and handle reputational risks, while embracing more sustainable production and consumption. Maria Teresa Pisani from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe will lead the discussion, along with key Australian textile and leather industry representatives. Registration is available here.
  • The Sustainable Leather Foundation (SLF) will host an in-person workshop July 15 in Arzignano, Italy that will introduce attendees to ways the organization is supporting the global leather industry. Workshop participants will learn about SLF's Transparency Dashboard, Audit Standard and Collaboration Hubs. More information, including registration details, is available here.  

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Latest Updates from Real Leather. Stay Different.

Did you know almost half of clothes sold by online fashion brands are made of plastic while millions of spare hides are burnt or sent to landfill? Check out LHCA's new video detailing the detrimental environmental impacts of discarding natural, durable hides. The video presents data demonstrating how hides are the sustainable choice to counter fast fashion's reliance on plastics and other non-natural materials. Get the latest news from Real Leather. Stay Different. here. And, don't forget to:

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Monthly Drought Monitor - July 2021

Another week of hot, dry weather in the Pacific Northwest, Northern Rockies, Northern Plains and Upper Midwest led to the expansion of drought conditions. Meanwhile, monsoon thunderstorms brought wet weather to eastern New Mexico and west Texas, resulting in large one-category improvements. Showers and thunderstorms associated with a slow moving cold front helped improve conditions in the Great Lakes regions and eastern U.S. Drought expanded in parts of the Mid-Atlantic that missed out on the heaviest rain.

 

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Other News

  • The Biden Administration issued a sweeping Executive Order last week, which directs regulators to address consolidation and competitive pricing in the ocean shipping and railroad industries. The Administration, in the  Executive Order, instructs the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) and the Surface Transportation Board to combat what it calls a pattern of consolidation and aggressive pricing that has made it onerously expensive for American companies to transport goods to market. The Administration says the relatively small number of major players in the ocean shipping trade and in the U.S. freight rail business has enabled companies to charge unreasonable fees. Specifically, the order encourages the FMC to "vigorously enforce the prohibition of unjust and unreasonable practices in the context of detention and demurrage pursuant to the Shipping Act" and asks the FMC to consider further rulemaking to improve detention and demurrage practices. The order also urges the FMC to request that its new National Shipper Advisory Committee develops recommendations on these issues. More details are available here.
  • Last month, we reported that the U.S. and European Union agreed to take steps to resolve their longstanding dispute over civil aircraft subsidies, including a five-year suspension of tariffs related to the dispute. A similar agreement was reached earlier this year between the U.S. and United Kingdom. USTR has now posted a Federal Register notice implementing the five-year tariff suspension. 

Leather News

Each week, we will share relevant leather news below. Some of the articles may cover our products, and the industry, unfavorably, but we still believe it is important to share the different ways in which leather is presented in the media. If you find articles that you would like to see included, please send them to mschumpp@meatinstitute.org.