As part of the Green Tannery Initiative, a new trial using sulfide-free enzymatic unhairing began on June 23, 2025, at the LLPIRC pilot tannery in Addis Ababa.

This demonstration follows the earlier rollout of the initiative we covered in October 2024 titled “Inside Ethiopia’s Green Tannery Initiative Led by CLRI and LLPIRC Driving Sustainable Leather Manufacturing” which is led by CSIR – Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI) in partnership with LLPIRC and UNIDO-Ethiopia, and funded by the UK’s SMEP Programme.

The current trials aim to train production staff from Ethiopian tanneries on safer, eco-friendly unhairing methods using locally sourced raw hides and skins. This method replaces sodium sulfide with enzymes reducing pollution and improving worker safety.

It also supports earlier goals of converting tannery waste into useful products and lowering overall carbon emissions from the leather manufacturing process.

The enzymatic unhairing trials are an important step toward cleaner leather production in Ethiopia.

Related News – Inside Ethiopia’s Green Tannery Initiative Led by CLRI and LLPIRC Driving Sustainable Leather Manufacturing