Volvo Cars to go leather-free in electric cars as part of animal welfare

Volvo Cars is taking an ethical stand for animal welfare in its fully electric cars. Starting with the new C40 Recharge, all new fully electric Volvo models will be completely leather-free. Volvo will launch a completely new family of pure electric cars in the coming years, and by 2030 it aims to offer only fully electric and leather-free cars.

Volvo Cars is working actively to find high-quality and sustainable sources for many materials currently used in the wider car industry. By 2025, it is aiming for 25 per cent of the material in new Volvo cars to consist of recycled and bio-based content. As part of its climate action plans, it also aims for all of its immediate suppliers, including material suppliers, to use 100 per cent renewable energy by 2025.

Volvo’s move towards leather-free interiors is driven by a concern about the environmental impacts of cattle farming, including deforestation. Livestock is estimated to be responsible for around 14% of global greenhouse gas emissions from human activity, with the majority coming from cattle farming. Instead of leather interior options, Volvo Cars will offer its customers alternatives such as high-quality sustainable materials made from bio-based and recycled sources.

Nordico, a new interior material created by Volvo Cars will consist of textiles made from recycled material such as PET bottles, bio-attributed material from sustainable forests in Sweden and Finland, and corks recycled from the wine industry – setting a new standard for premium interior design. This material will make its debut in the next generation of Volvo models.

Volvo Cars will also continue to offer wool blend options from suppliers that are certified to source responsibly, as the company looks to ensure full traceability and animal welfare in its wool supply chain.

Volvo Cars is also looking to reduce the use of residual products from livestock production commonly used within or in the production of plastics, rubber, lubricants and adhesives, either as part of the material or as a process chemical in the material’s production or treatment. It believes that while going leather-free is a step in the right direction, doing so alone does not make a car interior vegan.