February 9

Leather and Hide Weekly

LHCA yesterday kicked off its 2o21 International Student Design Competition to celebrate the beauty, versatility and sustainability of real leather. The competition builds on the success of ongoing contests in Taiwan, China, Italy and the United Kingdom. Also, LHCA continues to monitor shipping logistics challenges affecting U.S. hides, skins and leather exports, in particular, and U.S. agriculture exports, more broadly. Plus, 2020 year-end hides and skins export data was published, with important corrections made to volume figures for certain hide product exports. More on these and other topics below.

 

cattle

 

Weekly Hides and Skins Stats 

  • Net sales of cured cattle hides reported for the period ending January 28, 2021, were 421,300 pieces and net sales of wet blues were 94,900 pieces. Reported shipments of cured hides were 409,700 and of wet blues were 165,800. China was the largest buyer of cured hides and Italy was the largest destination for wet blues. See more. For historical data, click here. 
  • U.S. Cattle Slaughter was 653,000 last week, unchanged from the previous week. Total cattle slaughter in 2021 is 3,340,000 head, down 5% from the same period in 2020. See more.
  • USDA AMS Major Packer Hide Price Report provided prices for seven types of U.S. hides at eight price points with a spread of $12.00 for branded southwest cows to $38.50 for butt branded steers.  See more.

Industry Updates

rlsd pair

  • LHCA yesterday officially launched the Real Leather. Stay Different. 2021 International Student Design Competition. The competition, which builds on similar and ongoing contests in Taiwan, China, Italy and the United Kingdom, will be held virtually, and is open to all students and recent graduates from universities in any country around the world. Competition winners will receive an all-expenses paid trip to London, will have their product designs professionally manufactured and will be featured on the cover of Rollacoaster Magazine. Learn more here about this exciting competition.
  • LHCA wishes its industry partners in mainland China and Taiwan, and all those celebrating around the world, a wonderful year of the Ox, filled with joy, health and prosperity. As the year of the Rat concludes, LHCA remains appreciative of, and grateful for, the support of our partners in mainland China and Taiwan, and looks forward to a new year with more opportunities and greater success. 
  • LHCA has learned that India intends to impose 10% duties on certain leather imports, including wet blue, crust and finished leather products. The proposal has faced backlash from India's Council for Leather Exports, which may appeal the government to reconsider and reduce the import tariffs. The Government of India said it decided to withdraw the tariff exemption for these imports and reimpose duties because these products are produced domestically in sufficient quantity and quality. Wet salted hides are reportedly not subject to the tariff hike. LHCA will continue to monitor the situation and share additional details as they arise.
  • The Leather Working Group (LWG) recently launched the Tannery of the Future tool, a self-assessment designed to help leather manufacturers begin their journey towards environmental and social excellence. The tool allows tanneries to evaluate their current performance, identify areas for improvement and determine whether they are ready to undergo a LWG Audit. The tool is free, can be translated into more than 100 languages and promises 100 percent confidentiality. Learn more here.

Latest Updates from Real Leather. Stay Different.

adler_restory

 

In his latest blog post for Real Leather. Stay Different., renowned stylist Mike Adler sheds light on ways readers can bring their favorite, worn leather pieces back to life. Adler introduces readers to one of his preferred leather restoration companies, The Restory, which offers comprehensive restore and repair services that are sure to revive even the most lived-in leather items. So instead of tossing or replacing your favorite leather jacket, bag or pair of shoes, celebrate its durability by returning it to its original condition. You'll be doing your part to reduce waste, while turning heads in the process. Get the latest news from Real Leather. Stay Different. here. And, don't forget to:

 

devin_edwards

 

Monthly Trade Data

 

Over the past few months, LHCA has reported on inaccuracies that caused weekly and monthly sales and export data to diverge. LHCA informed U.S. Customs about these discrepancies, which prompted the agency to conduct an audit of their data. Last week, Customs published revised data, which shows that between March and September 2020, a large number of salted cattle hides exports to China were not properly counted in the data. The corrections are also reflected in U.S. hides and skins year-end 2020 export data, which is now available here. Product-specific data sets are below. 

  • Cured cattle hides exports increased 19 percent in volume and fell 24 percent in value compared to 2019. Download the data here.
  • Wet blue shipments decreased 21 percent in volume and 25 percent in value. Italy was the largest buyer by value, totaling more than $88 million.
  • Pig skin exports declined 3 percent in volume and 1 percent in value compared to 2019. Download the data here.  

Other News

  • The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced new enhancements and features to the Veterinary Services (VS) 16-3 APHIS eFile application used to request Animal Products, Organisms and Vectors permits. Effective February 1, 2021, APHIS eFile includes the VS 16-3 Animal Products, Organisms and Vectors permit applications, and offers the ability to file amendments and seek permit renewals. The online eFile system is only applicable to imports. To access this system and review its new features, click here.
  • The state of California is urging the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) to take immediate action to address shipping carriers' increased rejections of U.S. agricultural exports. In a letter sent to the FMC, the state of California underscores the detrimental impact of ongoing delays and shipping challenges for the agricultural sector, and calls on the FMC to review carriers' export policies. In recent months, carriers have prioritized sending empty containers over agricultural exports from the U.S., opting instead to transport more lucrative exports from Asia. LHCA remains engaged in efforts to hold carriers responsible for such actions. More here.

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.