BMW invests in vegan leather firm

In Illinois, plant-based leather alternative firm Natural Fiber Welding has received an unspecified investment from BMW i Ventures, the investment arm of BMW. 

Dubbed Mirium, Natural Fiber Welding’s material has a carbon footprint 40 times lower than animal leather and 17 times less than polyurethane leather alternatives. BMW has begun using vegan leather in certain models, and is removing leather entirely from its popular Mini. 

“Not only is this deal one of the first investments by a major automotive player into a deeply sustainable business, it also validates an increase in quality for leather alternatives beyond what has typically only been PVC,” Allen Zelden, president of FUTUREVVORLD and founder of Intrinity Global, tells vegconomist.