Student establishes vegan leather startup in Columbia

In Colombia, Oxford University student Gabriel Moreno has developed a vegan leather using fibers from the fique plant that helps create a revenue stream for local rural farmers. 

 Inspired by his father’s environmental consciousness, Moreno founded Fiquetex to commercialize the biodegradable material. 

“When we saw research predicting that there will be more plastic bags than fish in the sea by 2050, we knew that we had to make a change,” Moreno tells Plant Based News in a statement.  “Fiquetex’s vegan leather reduces the need for cows, which produce 100 kg of methane a year per cow and require a substantial amount of land. Our vegan leathers provide a cruelty-free alternative to harming animals or damaging their habitats in terms of pollution and waste both on land and in the sea.”

Moreno adds that Fique provides an alternative source of revenue for the region’s farmers other than illicit crops and drugs.