Production of Biodegradable Animal-Free Leather from Bacterial Cellulose Layer

Abstract One of the most popular goods traded globally is leather and its by-products. Tanneries transform the principal industrial raw material into usable leather. Although the leather tanning industry primarily uses waste from the livestock industry, it also uses a variety of chemicals to transform the raw material into the completed product. This excessive use of chemicals is detrimental to the environment as it is one of the significant causes of pollution. To overcome this, we attempted to produce biodegradable leather using SCOBY in our experiment. A by-product of the fermentation of Kombucha tea, SCOBY is a cellulose biofilm harbouring a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast. Two sucrose sources were used - sugarcane (13–15% sucrose) and sugar (99.9% sucrose), and the resulting layers from both sources were compared based on various tests. Our results have demonstrated that leather out of SCOBY possesses durability and strength at various temperatures as well as biodegradability and water retention capacity. Conclusively, we have demonstrated that further tests on these materials will exemplify their viable use in our day-to-day life in the future and would serve as the best and the most cost-effective as well as a chemical-free alternative to traditional leather.