Distribution and processing of cowhide
Cattle are raised worldwide for meat production, creating sufficient raw hides for leather production. Accounting for 65-70% of global leather production, this makes cowhide affordable for the end consumer. There's hardly an area where this leather isn't used. In addition to shoe soles, cowhide is primarily used for belts, saddles, furniture and car seat covers, and bags.
Properties of cowhide
Cowhide is a very stable and strong leather, which is often used for larger items (e.g. furniture covers) due to the size of the animals.
The surface area of a cowhide is up to 5 square meters. The cowhide typically has a density of up to 0.9 g/cm³ and a tensile strength of between 8 and 25 N/mm².
Other names for cowhide
The term "cowhide" refers to various types of leather from cattle and calves, as well as from bull or cowhide. The differences between the individual types are minimal in feel and grain, so they are collectively referred to as "cowhide."
Other types of leather on the market that can be classified as cowhide include: cowhide box, cowhide nappa, nubuck, rough leather, bare leather and boxcalf.
In this video you will learn more about the different types of leather:
Additional sources (accessed 14.01.2019):
- leder-info(punkt)de/index.php/Rindsleder
- lederzentrum(dot)de/wiki/index.php/Rindsleder
- lederpedia(dot)de/types of leather/start
