By the end of 2021, fashion giants Prada and Valentino will stop the use of certain animal materials in their products. Prada will stop using kangaroo leather and Valentino will stop use of alpaca wool. The Prada Group, with brands such as Prada, Miu Miu, Church’s, and Car Shoe confirmed to Italian animal rights group Lega Antivivsezione Italiana (LAV) it will cease the purchase of any new kangaroo leather.

According to Peta.org.uk, around 2.3 million kangaroos are reportedly killed every year for their skin. To produce leather, the animals are first shot. Then, the injured kangaroos – as well as orphaned joeys – are decapitated or hit sharply on the head to “destroy the brain” before their skin is torn off so it can be exported and made into accessories often labelled as k-leather.” Graphic photos of charred kangaroos and reports of their habitats having been destroyed by bushfires in Australia have led people to demand an end to this government-sanctioned slaughter.

The exotic skins industry is also responsible for the inhuman slaughter of crocodiles, snakes and ostriches, all of whom have died for fashion. Alpaca wool, famous for its soft and lustrous fibres, is used in some Valentino creations. These are harvested from live Alpacas from the world’s largest privately owned alpaca farm, Mallkini, located in Peru.

PETA recently revealed rough treatment of these animals at the hands of the shearers, which caused social media backlash. Valentino has said that it would hence severe all ties with Mallkini.