Where does leather come from?

Leather comes from animal hide, and common sources of leather include cattle, sheep, elk, deer and sheepskin. The production of leather is a process that takes approximately 10 days, depending on the material being processed.

Animal hide has been crafted into leather for thousands of years. Tanning is the process of transforming raw animal hide into leather. Steps in the tanning process involves removing unwanted organic material from the hide, stretching the hide, curing the hide with chromium salts, and cleaning excess chemicals off the hide. The hide is then processed to make it appear even and is often oiled to keep it supple.