Cowhide is not suitable for consumption and is therefore a global by-product of abattoirs and processing plants. In Germany some poor stock and waste is processed in the gelatine industry. The quality of cowhide as a base product for manufacturing leather is highly dependent on the geographical location, breed of cow and the climate zone. When producing leather and developing specific items, use of the right material and the right provenance is key to good leather and requires a good ability to assess the global merchandise to be used. There is a multitude of types of leather which can be produced from a very wide variety of raw materials:

• Thin aniline and finished leather for furniture and the car industry, including as crust leather 
• Thick leather for protective footwear
• Thick leather for equestrian sport and bag makers
• Thin full grain, corrected, finished and embossed nappa items for shoes, bags and the leather goods industry
• Split leather for shoe uppers in all thicknesses, sueded or finished.