As part of its Beyond100 journey to become a more sustainable OEM, Bentley Motors has introduced its first fully organic leather option for its vehicles. The new Olive Tan leather will make its debut on a Bentley vehicle at the Monterey Car Week in California on August 18, 2023.
The leather is produced using a sustainable tanning process that employs an organic by-product of the olive oil industry. Derived from wastewater extracted during the olive pressing procedure, the tanning agent does not contain any harmful metals, minerals or aldehydes. The technique also requires less water than traditionally used tanning processes. A higher concentration of renewable chemicals are also utilized.
Bentley Motors states it is the first vehicle OEM to use the Olive Mill Wastewater (OMW) technology from the leather tannery Pasubio. Bentley plans to offer sustainable, OMW-derived leather as an option across its product range.
“Leather is an integral component of our car interiors and a prime element in creating Bentley’s signature finish. It is also hard-wearing – especially important as 84% of all Bentley cars built are still on UK’s roads,” said Marc Stang, technical expert leather, Bentley Motors.
“We use 8-12 hides per car, all of which are sourced in the European Union. Bentley also avoids using hides linked to deforestation, reflecting the work within our supply chain to encourage greener processes. We remain committed to more sustainable leather sourcing, as well as working on other initiatives to improve our leather supply chain.”
