MINSK, 23 March (BelTA) – Prospects for the development of the Belarusian leather industry are great, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he met with employees of the Minsk Leather Production Association on 23 March, BelTA has learned.
One of the employees asked the president’s opinion about ecologists’ calls to replace natural leather and fur with synthetic materials.
“Who is ready to switch from footwear from natural leather to that from synthetic leather? Not me. I prefer footwear by Marko [a Belarusian footwear producer], fabric by Kamvol [a Belarusian textile manufacturer], my coat is Belarus-made. Believe me, the quality is splendid. We will continue making footwear from natural leather,” the head of state said.
As for calls from ecologists and animal right advocates, Aleksandr Lukashenko noted that people will not stop eating meat, which means that there will be raw materials for processing. “We eat beef, and we will use leather to make footwear,” he noted.
“People will not stop using natural leather,” the president believes. Therefore, the leather industry has a promising future.