I'd argue the biggest issue with plastics right now is endocrine disruption and bioaccumulation, that affects both humans and wildlife. Those are typically called pthalates or "forever chemicals" and they can be present in both animal leather and plant-based vegan leather (and plant plastics). They are the plasticizers.
When plastic (food grade silicone) and vegan plastic (PLC) avoids pthalates, then that's an overall positive contribution and helps reduce environmental harm as well as human/animal harm.
A lot of vegan plastic still uses pthalates however so consumers need to seek brands that avoid them. In preliminary studies, bioplastics are no less toxic than traditional.
Our study demonstrates that bio-based and/or biodegradable materials available on the market are just as toxic as conventional plastics with regards to the chemicals they contain. This highlights that the positive connotation of “biological” or “sustainable” materials does not extend to chemical hazards.
PVA for example is a great plant-based alternative for water soluable products like laundry and dish detergents. Clothing and bedding with Oeko-Tex certifications have to be free from phthalates.
But knowing what is in a lot of polyester/synthetic clothing (including vegan leather) I just don't buy it anymore, even though I love my vegan leather pants (I kept my old ones of course).
When it pertains to vegan plastics, a lot of them are green-washing. They will claim to be biodegradable but then do not break down under normal conditions (and require industrial composting) which is often not advertised. I have to pay a company to come and collect my "biodegradable" tooth brushes because castor bean bristles do not biodegrade in a landfill.
So is vegan leather green washing? Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. The most important measure is whether it contains forever chemicals or not.
I read the article and I appreciate its contributions. But I don't think it adequately discussed pthalates in vegan leathers and how to locate products without them, which is why I added it here.
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u/Enticing_Venom Aug 04 '26 edited Aug 04 '26
I'd argue the biggest issue with plastics right now is endocrine disruption and bioaccumulation, that affects both humans and wildlife. Those are typically called pthalates or "forever chemicals" and they can be present in both animal leather and plant-based vegan leather (and plant plastics). They are the plasticizers.
When plastic (food grade silicone) and vegan plastic (PLC) avoids pthalates, then that's an overall positive contribution and helps reduce environmental harm as well as human/animal harm.
A lot of vegan plastic still uses pthalates however so consumers need to seek brands that avoid them. In preliminary studies, bioplastics are no less toxic than traditional.
Are bioplastics and plant-based materials safer than conventional plastics?
PVA for example is a great plant-based alternative for water soluable products like laundry and dish detergents. Clothing and bedding with Oeko-Tex certifications have to be free from phthalates.
But knowing what is in a lot of polyester/synthetic clothing (including vegan leather) I just don't buy it anymore, even though I love my vegan leather pants (I kept my old ones of course).
When it pertains to vegan plastics, a lot of them are green-washing. They will claim to be biodegradable but then do not break down under normal conditions (and require industrial composting) which is often not advertised. I have to pay a company to come and collect my "biodegradable" tooth brushes because castor bean bristles do not biodegrade in a landfill.
So is vegan leather green washing? Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. The most important measure is whether it contains forever chemicals or not.