Certifications

LWG 7.2.2 TANNERY PROTOCOL

LEATHER WORKING GROUP TANNERIES ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT PROTOCOL

Leather Working Group is a Not-For-Profit Membership Organization and responsible for the World's Premiere Leather Manufacturing Certification. The LWG Environmental Auditing Protocol for Tanneries has been developed and reviewed by Leather Producers, Brands and Industry Experts to ensure Adequacy and Technical Feasibility. LWG aims to improve the Environmental Impact of the Leather Industry by Assessing and Certifying Leather Manufacturers against the Latest Issue 7 of the LWG Environmental Auditing Protocol. First launched in 2005, the LWG Leather Manufacturer Audit is our flagship audit protocol designed to assess the performance of leather manufacturing facilities (or "tanneries") against environmental, social and governance metrics. In 2021 we released a new version of the LWG audit standard (P7), bringing major changes to how we assess leather manufacturers, and representing a significant step forward to a more sustainable and secure leather supply chain. The audit has evolved to be a holistic, ESG-focused audit, and it now covers all elements of responsible leather manufacturing including environmental management, traceability, chemical management, social responsibility, and governance. The LWG Leather Manufacturer Audit Standard was designed to assess facilities processing leather from raw, crust, tanned material into pre-tanned, tanned, crust, or finished leather. Tanneries and Leather Producers can achieve either a Gold, Silver or Bronze certification or an Audited rating. Medal awards are determined by scoring in the ‘Critical Sections’. For ‘Gold’ Tanners must achieve a minimum of 85% in all critical sections. For ‘Silver’ Tanners must achieve a minimum of 75% in all critical sections. For ‘Bronze’ Tanners must achieve a minimum of 65% in all critical sections. For ‘Audited’ Tanners must achieve a minimum of 50% in all critical sections.