Information: POLOLO = 100 % ECO!

Leather, one of the world’s oldest textile materials, is tanned animal skin – a natural product! It gives us breathable, steam-permeable and skin-friendly protection from the cold, from moisture and from foot injuries.

POLOLOS retain these natural qualities. Each model is a piece of handiwork from our workshop in Bavaria. Only renewable vegetable materials are used for the tanning of the leather and lambskin we use, like the Valonea oak or the Tara fruit. Out of a feeling of responsibility for later generations, we uphold the highest ecological standards in our work;

POLOLO is an active member of the Internationaler Verband für Naturtextilien (IVN). We consistently follow the exacting guidelines of the IVN certificate for natural leather (“Naturleder”) that applies the strictest of requirements concerning contaminants content and manufacturing conditions, and prohibits the use of chrome-tanned leather. POLOLO only works with partners and suppliers who fulfill these obligations. Our shoes are compostable. We avoid unnecessary packaging. This helps close the ecological cycle of materials and prevents waste.

Benefits of vegetable tanning:

One of the oldest tanning procedures is the preservation of animal skins with tree bark, wood, gall or – as is the case at POLOLO – with parts of the Valonea oak as well as Tara fruit extracts.
Vegetably tanned leather is very skin-friendly, and if left uncoated, it also is especially breathable.

Health benefits:

The Fresenius Institute asked 50 patients with skin problems such as neurodermatitis, allergic eczema and other skin diseases to test direct skin contact with the kind of leather used by us (for ca. 48 hours). The undyed leather led to no reactions, even for very skin-sensitive persons. The vegetably tanned leather ECOPELL, which is used for the production of POLOLOs, is made with special care for environmental and health protection. On the other hand, industrially manufactured leather products that have been tanned with chrome salts can lead to contact allergies (ref. Stiftung Warentest report, February 2008). This kind of leather is produced by tanning the animal skins with chromium (III) salts. Trivalent chrome is firmly bound in the leather. But chrome also comes in another chemical variant: the unhealthy, hexavalent chromium (VI), also called chromate. The more chrome contained in the leather, the higher the allergy risk.
Chromate can easily permeate the skin, especially if this natural protective coat is not fully intact due to small injuries or rough patches. Various reasons can lead to chromate in leather: the chromium (III) tanning agents are polluted with chromate, or chromate develops in the course of the production process from the oxidization of chromium (III) – chromate can even develop later while wearing due to perspiration!
Most industrial leathers are also coated with resins like polyurethane or acrylates. Resin-sealed leather loses its breathability and naturalness!

Benefits for the environment:

So as to preserve the environment, it is prudent to use renewable, vegetable materials for the production of leather whenever possible.
80 percent of POLOLO’s vegetable tanning agents end up in the leather, the rest is broken down biologically. Our German suppliers’ remaining waste water is fed back into natural bodies of water only after having been completely cleansed mechanically and biologically in a treatment plant.
But vegetable tanning agents can have downsides, too. For instance when tropical or subtropical tree giants are felled or large monocultures are cultivated for their production. Which is why only tanning agents made from the harvestable parts of plants are used by our suppliers for the production of leather and lambskins.

At POLOLO, raw skins always come from German sources. This ensures highest animal-husbandry standards and helps verify their origin.

An example: A large part of global meat produce (and therefore of the raw materials for leather production) comes from Amazonian regions in Brazil. Brazil is the world’s largest meat exporting country. Here, 40 % of cattle breeding takes place in Amazonian regions. In order to gain grazing land for the cattle, the rainforest is cut down little by little. A study by Greenpeace was able to prove that cattle breeding is literally gobbling up the Amazonian rainforest. This predatory exploitation of nature is a danger both for the environment and for us humans. The Amazon Basin is home to the largest rainforest on earth and is one of the most species-rich ecosystems in the world. And it is of great importance to our climate and should be saved!
And local production and raw-skin procurement has another benefit: the use of unhealthy and dangerous preservatives and biocides is unnecessary, thanks to short transport routes!
Leather from Germany adheres to the highest standards concerning workplace conditions and safety, waste-water treatment and environmental protection. But on a global scale, only a small portion of leather products are produced to these standards. Regrettably, a labeling requirement, covering where leather products are from and how they have been tanned, does not exist yet. We are doing our bit to help change the way people think about this.

Your POLOLO Team