The outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease in UK and parts of Europe in 2001 caused some disruption in trade in hides, skins and leather. The following summary sets out the processes in the leather industry that minimise the risk of infectivity from hides, skins and leather.
According to the Office International des Epizooties (the World Organisation for Animal Health) the causative agent of Foot and Mouth disease is progressively inactivated by temperatures above 50 degrees C and by pH levels below 6.0 and above 9.0. A range of disinfectants can also inactivate it.
For example the standard leather making process involves the treatment of the material with strong alkaline solutions to a pH in excess of 12, pickling with acid to a pH below 3, tanning with chromium, or other tanning agents, and dyeing and drying at a temperature well above 50 degrees C. Each of these processes will be more than sufficient to inactivate the foot and mouth disease virus, and hides or skins which have been subjected to these processes will be free of foot and mouth disease.
These processes ensure that the material complies with the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 (A) indents 2 to 5 of Chapter 3 of Annex 1 to EU Directive 92/118/EEC, and that the material is therefore conforming to Commission Decision 2001/172/EC of 1 March 2001 on certain protective measures with regard to foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom.
This means that under EU legislation, limed hides, pickled pelts, wet blue and fully tanned leather could be freely traded within the European Union on condition that the accompanying commercial documentation demonstrates the processes the material has undergone.
For exports to other countries, although the details outlined above demonstrate that there is no risk of foot and mouth disease from processed hides, skins and leather, some countries may require veterinary certificates.
For further information contact Paul Pearson, Director UK Leather Federation
tel: +44 1604 679917/fax +44 1604 679998.
