Building the path to deforestation-free leather: a practical traceability guide for brands
By
-
and Kateri Ciccaglione
© Shutterstock / SeventyFour
When conversations turn to deforestation, many people immediately think of the Amazon, where vast forests have been cleared to make room for agriculture. In Brazil and across Latin America, cattle ranching remains the largest driver of forest loss, particularly in high-risk biomes such as the Amazon and the Cerrado.
Leather, a byproduct of beef production, sits squarely within this challenge. While hides are not the primary driver of beef production, leather supply chains are intrinsically connected to the landscapes where deforestation and ecosystem conversion continue to occur at an alarming scale. For companies sourcing leather for automobiles, footwear, apparel, and accessories, understanding and addressing this connection has become an urgent priority.
Over the past several years, many consumer brands have made ambitious commitments to eliminate deforestation from their supply chains. Yet one persistent question remains: how do you credibly trace leather back to its origin, through what is usually a complex, global, and fragmented supply chain that starts with the birth of calves and runs through slaughterhouses and tanneries?
From ambition to implementation…
With support from the Tapestry Foundation and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, World Wildlife Fund partnered with RFLCT Consulting to help answer that question. Together, we developed the Traceability Guide for Deforestation- and Conversion-Free (DCF) Leather – a practical resource designed to help brands turn deforestation-free commitments into actionable traceability pathways.
The guide was developed in close collaboration with brands participating in the Deforestation‑Free Call to Action for Leather, a joint effort led by WWF, Textile Exchange, and the Leather Working Group. Today, the Call to Action includes 22 fashion and automotive companies representing more than $300 billion in annual revenues – all of them committed to sourcing verified deforestation-free leather by 2030 or earlier.
Drawing on a series of one-on-one interviews and structured working sessions with these brands, the Traceability Guide was shaped by real-world sourcing challenges, operational constraints, and the need for solutions that can scale.
Why traceability matters
Leather supply chains are among the most complex in the global economy. A single hide may pass through multiple producers, processors, and countries – from cattle farms and slaughterhouses to tanneries, manufacturers, and finished-goods suppliers. In most regions, cattle also move through multiple farms during their lifetimes, making it difficult to link leather back to the birth farms to determine whether deforestation was present.
Historically, this complexity has been used as a justification for inaction. Tanneries and brands have argued that because hides are a byproduct of beef, tracing them to origin is impractical if not impossible.
But that narrative is beginning to change.
Advances in digital traceability, geospatial monitoring, and data standards now make it possible to follow leather materials more closely than ever before. At the same time, new regulations – such as the EU Deforestation Regulation – are raising the bar for supply-chain transparency, requiring companies to demonstrate where their products come from and whether they are linked to deforestation or habitat conversion. Traceability is no longer optional. It is the foundation for transparency and credible deforestation-free claims.
© Shutterstock / Nordroden
What the Traceability Guide offers
The Traceability Guide for DCF Leather is designed to meet brands wherever they and their supply chains are on their traceability journey.
Rather than prescribing a single solution, the guide helps companies:
Understand traceability fundamentals, and how traceability differs from – and complements – certification, chain of custody systems, and supply-chain mapping.
Assess their current state, identifying strengths, gaps, and readiness for end-to-end traceability.
Navigate a practical, 10-step implementation roadmap, from early pilots with trusted suppliers to full-scale traceability across operations.
Align with global standards, including event-based traceability and interoperable data frameworks that can support regulatory compliance.
Translate ambition into action, with clear guidance on supplier engagement, data requests, verification, and continuous improvement.
Importantly, the guide recognizes that traceability is a journey. Progress happens step by step – through pilots, partnerships, and shared learning.
A tool for collective progress
While the guide builds on the leadership of signatories to the Deforestation-Free Call to Action for Leather, it is designed for public use. Any company seeking to implement credible deforestation- and conversion-free leather sourcing can use it as a roadmap – regardless of geography, size, or starting point.
This work reflects a broader shift underway in the leather sector: from fragmented, opaque supply chains toward systems that reward transparency, accountability, and responsible production. Traceability alone will not solve deforestation. But without it, deforestation-free commitments cannot be verified, trusted, or scaled.
By equipping brands with practical tools and shared approaches, WWF and its partners aim to accelerate this transition – supporting a future where leather products are no longer linked to forest loss, and where supply chains help protect the landscapes and communities on which they depend.
Download the Traceability Guide for Deforestation- and Conversion-Free (DCF) Leather
Traceability is the foundation of credible deforestation-free leather sourcing. Developed in collaboration with leading brands, this guide clarifies what traceability is – and how to implement it – offering a 10-Step Approach toward verified DCF leather sourcing.
© WWF