Volvo will no longer make leather-free cars

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Volvo will no longer make leather-free cars

Volvo cars go leather-free LONDON Reuters - Swedish carmaker Volvo Cars said in 2013 that its vehicle range would go leather-free or'vegan-friendly' by 2030, offering instead bio-based and recycled materials to a client base which increasingly wants sustainably sourced products.

We've got a new generation of customers coming through, they're far more interested in the products they buy and have an ethical story behind them, Robin Page, Volvo's head of design, told Reuters. They want to understand where the materials came from. Volvo said the shift recognizes consumer concerns over animal welfare issues in the leather industry and the environmental impact of cattle farming.

It also coincides with the sustainable aspirations of Volvo's plan to release a sustainable car line by 2030.

Volvo's current all electric C 40 Recharge model is already leather-free, and the company is exploring using materials such as Nordico - made from recycled material, forests byproducts, recycled corks and plastic bottles - that the head of design Page said has the same softness and warmth as leather.

For someone who loves leather but is aware of the negative effects of leather on the environment, this is a good, modern way to capture the properties but is the right material for the future, Page said.

The carmaker also aims to use recycled linen to reduce its carbon footprint and flax plants grown in Sweden in between crops which replenishes the soil. Volvo will also use flax to get the door panels.

Consumers are not only concerned about the sustainability of the end product but also the material that goes into it, including sourcing, said Stuart Templar, Volvo's director of global sustainability.