Exploring food waste as raw material for plant-based leather to promote sustainable material development

Abstract

Several efforts can be made to promote sustainability in the fashion and textile industry. One potential effort is exploring renewable resources as raw materials for eco-friendly materials. In our study, repurposing food waste into sustainable material promotes waste reduction and the circular economy. Our initial study explored the potential use of food waste, specifically banana peels and pineapple fiber, as raw materials to develop an eco-friendly and sustainable material. The research was aimed at producing an alternative to animal and synthetic leather, which supports SDG 12. In this study, we formulated plant-based leather using the organic waste of banana peels and variations in the concentration of pineapple fibers. The concentration of banana peels in the formulation was 2.5% of the total formulation. The pineapple fibers varied by 0.5%, 1%, and 1.5% of the formulation. We checked the mechanical properties by investigating the tensile strength, stitching ability, and water contact angle. The result suggested that the concentration of fibers was the critical factor that affected the tensile strength and stitching ability, and the higher fiber resulted in higher tensile force. The study also suggested that the material has poor water resistance. This initial study demonstrates the potential of food waste, which combines banana peel and pineapple fiber, as viable resources for sustainable material development. The study could be the foundation for further development of sustainable plant-based leather, which promotes the circular waste approach for developing valuable products in industry applications.