S&V African Leather Magazine Vol16 No2 February 2022
This Magazine is sponsored by SAFLIA
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IN THIS ISSUE:
3 Sam Setter's Pills
- A new quip from Sam Setter in each issue.
03 Sector Reports
- Game skins: A campaign started in 2019 to ban the importation of hunting trophies into the UK has still not been finalised. Pieter Erasmus of SATTA explains the background and the potential consequences.
- Exotic leather: The leather industry - especially the exotic leather industry - has to accept that it will not be treated fairly, says Cape Karoo International's Frik Kriek, so it needs to maintain its supply chain integrity.
10 An Eclectic View
- Emergencies: Plan for the worst and expect the best, writes H. Procter.
13 Tanning Science Decoded
- Factors that affect the area yield of leather in a tannery: A summary of many years' experience by Dr Clive Jackson-Moss of the ISTT.
15 Weights & Measures
- Compiled by the ISTT.
16 Agriculture
- Rising interest rates and wetness place a dampener on a potentially excellent agriculture season, writes Paul Makube of FNB.
16 Fairs & Conferences
- III Eurocongress IULTCS 2022 announces silver and bronze sponsors.
17 Knowledge Transfer, Education & Training
- Making leather, Part 1 of 10: Introduction and raw materials, by Richard Daniels.
Advertisers in this Issue
ISTT (OFC), Italtan (03), Mimosa (06), Rolfes Leather Division (04), S&V Calendar (this page), S&V Directory (09), Skin, Hide & Leather Council (SHALC) (07), Southern African Footwear & Leather Export Council (SAFLEC) (06).
In The Next Issue
- Leather: The material of choice for the growing number of crafters and hobbyists.
- Out on 02 March.
- EMERGENCIES Plan for the worst and expect the bestWatching a colleague in pain, or being loaded into an ambulance, sends a shiver down the spine of even the most heartless tanner. Work-related accidents that arise from health and safety emergencies do still occur in factories across the world. ...moreFactors that affect the area yield of leather in a tanneryGrahamstown, E. Cape, SA - This article is a summary of practical experience that was gained by a tanner working in a shoe upper tannery over a period of close to 40 years. ...moreMaintaining leather supply chain integrityThe leather industry - especially the exotic leather industry - has to accept that it will not be treated fairly. So, like Caesar's wife, it must be above suspicion ...moreRising interest rates and wetness place a dampener on a potentially excellent agriculture seasonJohannesburg, Gauteng, SA (27 January 2022): After a bullish start to the 2021/22 agriculture season with prospects of another excellent season despite cost pressures, the sector faces a further challenge of increased cost of debt following the South African Reserve Bank’s (SARB’s) decision to raise its repo rate by 0.25% and subsequently the prime lending rate to 7.5%. Although likely to be cautious, expectations are for further increases of 125 basis points through to 2023. ...moreChimica Vermar is silver sponsor of the III Eurocongress IULTCS 2022Chimica Vemar is the Silver Sponsor of the III IULTCS Eurocongress Vicenza 2022 in September. The company has supplied high quality chemical products, with a range of over 2000 products, inclusive of all stages of leather tanning, for over 30 years. ...more
Footwear Industry Articles
- Plastics SA ‘celebrates 30 years of inspiring South Africans to take action against litter’ – but so much more is neededJohannesburg, Gauteng, SA – Plastics SA, the umbrella body which represents all sectors of the SA plastics industry, will hold its 30th annual ‘Clean-Up and Recycle Week’ from 14-20 September.In a release, Plastics SA said the annual event “has grown into one of South Africa’s largest collaborative environmen ...moreObituary: Joe McGinley, Conshu (14/04/1936-20/05/2026) He ran an empire, but kept a human touchSomerset West, W. Cape, SA – Joseph Pascal McGinley, the former Conshu director who died in May, a month after his 90th birthday, was a larger-than-life character who was renowned during his career in SA for his kindness, and who lived life to the full.Born in Letterkenny, Donegal, Ireland, to Joseph and Madeline McGinley, both doct ...more2026 Comrades shoe count: Asics stays top, Adidas up, Nike slides into 4th placeMarathon shoe counts are among the few footwear statistics available in SA. The Sweat Shop’s Jax Snyman has extracted this year’s Comrades Marathon figures for comparison with last year.His assessment: “Asics up. Adidas properly up. New Balance steady although now 3rd largest. Nike down and drop in rankings to 4th. Sauco ...more
Leather Industry Articles
- Organic cotton at the crossroads: Ideology, evidence, and the road aheadWashington, DC, U.S.A. (23 June 2026) — Organic cotton occupies one of the most contentious spaces in global agriculture. While praised by brands and consumers for its environmental ideals, it also faces persistent questions about yield stability, certification integrity, and scalability. The current edition of The ICAC Recorde ...moreBeyond the data trap: Why better decisions matter more than just more dataOn 1st July 2026 I presented at the FILK Leather Days conference and asked the delegates to consider “Sustainability through a new lens: resetting how we view impacts in the leather value chain”. This month’s article therefore explores this idea a little more with a focus on how we view data and whether it can blind us t ...moreWorld first - compost: Possible, desirable, not necessarily simpleThe world of compostable leather is not as historically accurate as the industry would like it to be. The definition of leather is: “hide or skin with its original fibrous structure more or less intact, tanned to be imputrescible (rot-proof). Hair or wool may or may not have been removed, and the material can include split layers or ...more
PPE Industry Articles
- Premier Workwear: Engineered protection for Africa’s industrial workforceIn high-risk industrial environments, protective clothing is far more than a uniform requirement — it is a critical component of workplace safety, operational reliability and regulatory compliance. For procurement professionals, safety managers and operational leaders, selecting the right supplier means finding a partner capable of ...moreFurther controls over the import of safety footwear are on the wayOn 03 August 2026, the Safety Footwear Working Group, led by SAFLIA, submitted a request to Minister Tau (dtic) for interim import control measures in respect of specified safety footwear. The request was strongly supported by organised labour and other industry stakeholders.The application was further strengthened by contributions f ...moreRealPPE Marketplace: Where safety meets smarter procurementRealPPE Marketplace is a 100% black women-owned B2B PPE marketplace built for South African industry. Founded after years of witnessing safety officers and procurement teams lose time to fragmented suppliers, inconsistent pricing, and missing documentation, RealPPE was created to bring structure and reliability to industrial PPE sourcing. ...more
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