ISA TanTec, the leading sustainable leather manufacturer, and business unit of ISA Next-Gen materials (ISA), is proud to announce that it has partnered with Other Half Processing (OHP) to develop and expand a regenerative hide and leather supply chain it has named “Raising Livestock, Regenerating Landscapes” which is verified using the Generalized Regenerative Agriculture Sourcing Specification (GRASS) protocol. This protocol aims to support regenerative farmers and ranchers in the US by creating a traceable regenerative leather supply chain, marking the first commercially available US based regenerative cattlehide supply chain.

The GRASS protocol provides market partners the confidence needed to make regenerative product origins and claims, while allowing a greater scale of supply and diversity of sourcing options for verified regenerative hides beyond what any single regenerative certification system offers. GRASS does this through the use of an equivalency approach that identifies the key indicators and eligible inspection/certification approaches needed to verify regeneratively raised cattle grazing practices, systems and outcomes, including:

      • Soil health, water cycling and retention

      • Soil organic carbon sequestration

      • Biodiversity protection and vegetative cover

      • Animal health and welfare

      • Farmer/Rancher livelihoods and profitability

“At ISA, we are committed to realizing our LITE (Low Impact To the Environment) manufacturing concept by carrying out sustainable actions. We are proud to partner with OHP on the GRASS supply chain, which establishes a high standard for sourcing hides produced through regenerative agriculture – creating products that are both beneficial for people and our planet,” said Keith Hill, the Vice President Sustainable Business Development of ISA. “With a commercially available regeneratively-raised cattlehide supply chain in place, we have the availability of “Raising Livestock, Regenerating Landscapes” verified hides for customers to design products with and enhance the overall traceability and accountability for their supply chain.”

“Our goal with GRASS is to give companies trust that hides used for leather are sourced from cattle raised under verified regenerative grazing systems that are better for animals, producers, and planet,” said Jim Kleinschmit, Co-Founder and CEO of Other Half Processing. “ISA was critical to the development and establishment of the GRASS hide and leather supply chain, and we’re excited continue our work together to grow the supply of GRASS verified regenerative hides and leather.”

ISA has supported the development of the GRASS regenerative cattlehide supply chain over the last three years in partnership with Timberland and OHP, and also collaborates with Savory’s Land to Market and Holistic Management International in support of regenerative agriculture practices.

This initiative is a major milestone for ISA, as the company promotes its regeneratively-sourced cattlehides to customers with enhanced traceability. With GRASS providing a clear standard for sourcing cattlehides from verified regenerative farms and ranches and open to all companies to use, ISA and OHP hope to inspire those in the industry to join them on the journey toward a more sustainable future.