Fabulose Workshop: Feel and Durability Drive Acceptance of Bio-Based Leather

The EU-funded Fabulose project held a consumer workshop in Mannheim where participants evaluated texture, durability and transparency of bio-based leather alternatives, finding these factors heavily influence acceptance. The event was organized by Steinbeis Europa Zentrum with partners including Melina Bucher and DITF. Findings suggest that clear information and material performance are key for market adoption.

A consumer workshop run by the EU-funded research project Fabulose found that texture, durability and transparency about how a material is made decide how people judge bio-based leather alternatives. The session took place on September 19 at the Mannheim studio of German vegan accessories label Melina Bucher, a member of the Fabulose consortium. Steinbeis Europa Zentrum, which leads stakeholder engagement for the project, organised the workshop with Melina Bucher and the German Institutes of Textile and Fibre Research (DITF), the project’s coordinator. Participants included consumers, designers and regular users of conventional leather goods, and the results will feed into the next phase of material development.How participants rated the samples Participants brought items they already owned, some of them used for decades, including wallets, handbags, jackets and shoes. They linked the material mainly with comfort, quality, appearance, longevity and the patina it develops over the years. Assessment of the alternative samples centred on texture, flexibility, durability, appearance and smell. Samples that felt natural and resembled high-end natural materials scored well, and those perceived as artificial, plastic-like or fragile scored lower. Expectations also varied by product type. Participants considered many of the samples suitable for bags, purses and accessories, but set a higher bar for comfort, flexibility, breathability and durability in shoes and products worn against the skin. According to the organisers, participants rated materials more positively once they learned what the materials were made from and how they were produced. Mycelium-based materials and materials made from recycled resources drew the most interest. The organisers also found that sustainability credentials did not compensate for weaker performance, as participants expected bio-based options to match conventional leather on quality, functionality and durability. Bacterial cellulose and cyanophycin as base materials Fabulose is developing animal-free, biodegradable leather alternatives from bacterial cellulose, the bacterial biopolymer cyanophycin and bacterial pigments, using AI and digital twins to optimise production. The project is funded by the EU through the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking and runs for three and a half years on a budget of around €3.5 million, with fashion, automotive interiors and upholstered furniture as target applications. Melina Bucher, which runs a bag-making workshop in Mannheim dedicated to vegan and bio-based materials, previously launched handbags made with Mirum, a plastic-free material developed by Natural Fiber Welding. The September session was the first of Fabulose’s co-creation workshops.

Read source: Vegconomist