CLIA predicts growth for synthetic substitutes
Billions of square-metres of synthetic materials for manufacturers of finished products to use instead of leather continue to come out of factories in China.
At the end of October, the China Leather Industry Association (CLIA) reported that the country’s production of these PU- and PVC-based materials declined by almost 5% in 2019 compared to the previous year.
However, in 2019, China’s production of those synthetic materials still reached an enormous volume, 34 billion square-metres.
It said stricter environmental regulations to control emissions of volatile organic compounds had halted production at some factories and forced some smaller producers of these plastics to go out of business.
But it said demand for artificial substitutes for leather was still strong and warned that, because large-scale manufacturers will be able to invest to satisfy environmental regulations, production is likely to increase again in the years ahead. “Substitution of artificial materials for real leather will increase,” CLIA said.
