Origin: Mexico


From its harvest cycle to its durability, cactus leather has proved to be a strong plant-based alternative to animal leather. Even compared to other crops, nopal cactus has the upper hand. The plants continue to thrive as they are repeatedly harvested for 8 years, and they do not require any irrigation or pesticides! This creates a drastic cut in emissions (water, carbon, and chemicals) compared to harvesting cow hides or creating plastic. Cactus leather has proved to be a great native species for Mexico which will help revert land use change.

The cactus is harvested, cleaned, and processed into a powder. Byproduct of this separation is sent to the food industry. What remains is the protein of a nopal plant which is then backed with both recycled cotton and recycled polyester to increase durability.  The supple face of the fabric you will notice is the cactus itself.

The mill has received the LVMH Innovation Award, Green Product Award, PETA Business Friends Certification, and many others. Simply put, it's an amazing example of carbon negative farming. Currently, the mill generates 15.30 tons of CO2 annually while its small 14 acre farm absorb 8,100 tons of CO2.

Harvesting cactus saves

164,650.00% of water
+
1,864.02% greenhouse gas emissions

compared to harvesting animals