Ecology

At our production we are committed to creating conditions for ensuring safety of our employees, care for the local ecology as well as the entire environment as a whole

In October 2018, Volga Tannery became the first Russian Tannery to receive Gold rating from the LWG. The audit conducted by the UK-based Leather Working Group, an international association of leatherworkers, confirmed the fact that the Tannery production processes comply with the strict international standards in regards to the ecology and the production workers' safety.

In 2022 Leather Working Group has taken the decision to suspend all auditing and certification activities in Russia during the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Despite the decision, Volga Tannery will continue to ensure that it meets LWG's strictest standards and is prepared to further strive to the highest achievements in all aspects of ecological and social safety of production.

Our hope remains that the conflict will end within a reasonable time, and our Tannery will once again be able to confirm its compliance with LWG standards.

Alexander Rybnikov

Head of Ecology Department

Volga Tannery is one of the largest leather production enterprises, carrying out production activities with an understanding of responsibility for possible negative impacts on the environment.
The strategic goal of the Tannery's environmental policy is to ensure environmentally oriented development of the Company while maintaining a high level of environmental safety and reducing environmental risks associated with the implementation of the Tannery's activities.

We are well aware that the unique quality of our Tannery’s products directly depends on the place where we are located – in the heart of our country, on the shores of Lake Seliger, unique for its water properties. It is in our interests to preserve the original status of both the lake and the nature around it.

Volga Tannery has become a new partner of Ecology Fund

In 2019 Volga Tannery joined Ecology Fund's latest environmental project - Ecology club and participated at the Fund’s New Year Charity event.

The Ecology club is dedicated to uniting businesses partial to the preservation of Russia's wildlife.

Volga Tannery has become a new partner of Ecology Fund

Care for the environment at the heart of our production processes

Many global fashion brands are paying increased attention to the environmental safety of their suppliers' production processes. Volga Tannery operates strictly in accordance with the RSL requirements of its customers in regards to the chemicals used in the production process.

As part of its contribution to the safety of the environment the Tannery has launched its own ecological line – chrome-free, fully vegetable, semi-vegetable and metal-free crust and leather. Also in 2015 the Tannery’s shareholders invested around 100 million rubles to improve the wastewater treatment processes.

State-of-the-art wastewater treatment facilities made by an Italian manufacturer had been installed at the Tannery. The new plant allows us to perform multi-stage process of neutralization, purification and recovery of the chromium-containing effluents. The technology allows us to reuse the chromium recovered from the Tannery’s wastewater.

Care for the environment at the heart of our production processes

Environmental policy

Volga Tannery has become the first tannery in Russia to achieve the standard in accordance with SLF standards based on the results of the audit

In December 2022 Volga Tannery has become the first Tannery in Russia to achieve the standard in accordance with the SLF Standards in three modules – Governance Responsibility, Social Responsibility and Environmental Responsibility.

SLF - Leather Sustainability Foundation - is one of the leading non-profit international organizations established to control the quality standards of leather production.

The result obtained confirms that the production process at our Tannery fully complies with international standards and norms.

Here at the Tannery we constantly carry out external monitoring of the environment including ongoing water and air purity measurements. We keep improving production processes in order to reduce the level of energy consumption.

The Tannery has developed its own energy saving program which includes switching to energy-saving facilities, due to which the consumption of electrical energy has been reduced by 30% compared to 2016.