Sustainability, a theme that is constantly in the spotlight, a word that recurs every day in our speeches, a concept that immediately after being a word must show concrete elements, strategies, skills so that it becomes real action.
Our Magazine has been following the evolution of green issues for three years now and observes with particular attention what happens in the world of fashion, new technologies, circular economy projects, the transformation of production waste that can become secondary raw materials, through different ways.
For this reason, an observatory was created, which gave rise to the Excellence Green Awards, which every year analyzes the most innovative projects consistent with the requirements of the Green Deal 2030/2040, rewarding the excellence that stood out for its attention and care of the environment, during the Excellence Green Night, gala event.
As part of this project, we met Andrea Martini, CEO of Italconcia, a tanning company in the district of Santa Croce sull’Arno, in Tuscany, specializing in the processing of calfskin. Italconcia was born from the dream of Pietro Martini, a young apprentice, who in 1953 imagined creating a high quality production reality.
Andrea Martini, who is carrying out the family business, has strongly developed research activities focusing on the innovation-quality combination, directing investments towards the issues of environmental sustainability, energy saving, eco-sustainable production, up to the recovery of waste production.
Italconcia aims to become a partner for its customers, with whom it intends to share a real path towards the circular economy.
Andrea, great progress has been made in Italconcia in recent years, can you tell us about the new projects?
Our business must inevitably evolve, observing what European legislation requires to respect in order to reduce and if possible eliminate the environmental impact of tanning productions.
We started from this, from the need to produce a leather that was really natural, better that it was bio-based, that is, without materials from the oil industry and substances that are harmful or harmful to humans and the environment.
And have you succeeded?
Yes, with great pride and humility that has always characterized our way of doing business, I can say that our new BBL BioBasedLeather® product satisfies and anticipates the times of adaptation to the standards set by the European Green Deal 2040, going further to the biocompatibility requirements, being 97% organic.
The entire life cycle of the product (from-cradle-to-grave) is carbon neutral and the production process uses only energy from renewable sources.
The Carbon Footprint is minimized thanks to the traceability and strong governance of the supply chain.
I imagine there has been a great deal of research and major investments in the production cycle…
Two years of studies and tests with the main research institutes in our area, which allowed us to produce BBL BioBasedLeather®. Really clean skin.
We have also analyzed one of the main needs of our customers: the disposal of production waste.
It is from this need that our Be Future project was born, a circular economy project that involves the recovery of production waste and their disposal through innovative processes that transform raw material into secondary raw material.
Can you explain to me better?
Our tannery works with the main luxury groups, which are very attentive to the issues of sustainability, the green economy and more generally to the protection of the planet.
BBL BioBasedLeather®, being a natural leather, allows a total recovery of production waste which is transformed into a new secondary raw material: the biofertilizer.
In this way, Italconcia wants to develop a solid partnership with its customers, with whom it wants to forge a true alliance that has positive effects on the environment, on the territory and on people.
How do you intend to act on the territory?
Our dream is to create a green space next to the tannery to be used as a park, planted only with Tuscan essences. It will be a new lung for our municipality made available to citizens and will further help us offset CO2 emissions.
Our way of doing business is characterized by small steps, we walk when we are sure we have achieved real results. BBL BioBasedLeather® is a revolution in the world of leather, able to combine high technical performance and respect for the environment.
Show room open, can you tell us what it is?
During this week, which anticipates Linea Pelle – an important event in our sector that is held in Milan – we invited our customers to visit the show room that wasato set up, for the occasion, like a real garden.
There seems to be the ideal environment to discuss our new project and to touch the BBL BioBasedLeather® leather first hand.
