India – Not only the world’s tannery but also dominant in leather goods and accessories
Leather is one of the most widely traded commodities globally and India’s leather industry is one of its oldest manufacturing industries with a prominent place in the Indian economy. The Indian leather manufacturing industry has been catering to the global market from the 19th century and accounts for around 13% of the world's leather production of hides/skins and handles a robust annual production of about 3 billion square feet of leather. This industry is an employment intensive industry providing jobs to more than 4 billion people. The major part of the leather is produced in the southern part of India, i.e., Tamil Nadu, the largest leather producer state with 40% of the country’s leather production. India has an abundance of raw materials with access to 20% of the world's cattle and buffalo and 11% of the world's goat and sheep population. Leather is known for substantial export earnings and is among the top 10 foreign exchange earners for the country. India is the 2nd ...