In the world of material innovation, we see more and more awareness of the impact materials have on the world. When we realise that cows are one of the largest contributors to climate change, it is not strange that more and more alternatives for fake leather appear on the market. The Swiss company Happy Genie created luxury handbags out of a new animal free leather: made from apples.

After making apple juice, the pulp is left, which is usually thrown simply away. To make the leather, the apple waste, from apples cultivated in Italy, is dried and ground into powder. This powder is mixed with pigments and a binder and spread out onto a canvas, until it turns into a leather-like material, which is PETA-approved vegan.

Using the apple waste to make a high-end product of course creates less waste, but using it as an alternative to real leather also has a lot of advantages. Cows release a lot of methane into the atmosphere, the greenhouse gas that contributes the most to global warming. In addition, livestock farming is often accompanied by deforestation. Furthermore, to tan leather, many harmful chemicals are needed.

Happy Genie offers a high-end handbag made from apple leather, handmade by craftsmen in Italy. The bag comes in four colours (black, white, taupe and brown), but you can customise it attaching a printed clutch to the front, which can also be used separately. The bags come with changeable shoulder straps or handles, in plain colour or with a design. You can buy the first bags via Kickstarter.

Happy Genie is not the only making a fashion statement using apples. US shoe company Veerah recently released a line of pumps made from fake leather from apple peels.

For more animal free leather at Materia, click here.

Photos: Happy Genie / Veerah