Not only do butcher’s shops wait for the Eid Al-Adha, because demand for meat then peaks, but tanneries also wait for the holiday in order to get the hides needed to produce leather.
Hides are the raw, untreated skin of an animal, and the animals sacrificed during the Eid Al-Adha provide about 25 per cent of the annual needs of Egypt’s tanneries, Abdel-Rahman Al-Gabbas, a former board member of the Leather Export Council, told the Al-Ahram Weekly.
However, the tanneries also complain that slaughtering operations outside of automated slaughterhouses and lack of healthcare for livestock can affect the quality of the leather.
Ahmed Al-Gabbas, deputy chair of the Leather Export Council, told the Weekly that around 30 per cent of hides will be wasted this year due to damage, directly impacting both production and exports.
According to council data, Egypt’s exports of leather, footwear, and leather products fell by 32.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2025, generating just $23.2 million compared to $34.6 million during the same period in 2024.
Ahmed Al-Gabbas attributed part of the decline to the ongoing global trade tensions between the US and China, which have weakened the international demand for leather.
China, Egypt’s largest leather importer, has reduced its purchases by 40 to 50 per cent since US President Donald Trump took office in 2025, Abdel-Rahman Al-Gabbas said.
Aside from China, key importers of Egyptian leather include Turkey, Italy, Spain, Vietnam, and Thailand. Globally, leather prices have dropped by around 20 per cent due to the sluggish international trade.
Both experts complained of damage caused by unregulated manual slaughtering during the Eid, arguing that it undermines leather quality. The lack of government oversight and veterinary vaccination programmes have further exacerbated the issue, leading to visible signs of diseases on some hides post-slaughter, they said.
Ahmed Al-Gabbas said that the decline in quality had pushed Egyptian leather down from top-tier global rankings, depressing its export value. While premium-quality hides fetch up to $2 per piece globally, Egyptian hides now range from just $0.60 to $1.50.
Abdel-Rahman Al-Gabbas added that rising temperatures are also degrading hide quality due to improper salting and storage.
But he is hopeful that the higher prices of livestock this year have led many consumers to opt for slaughter vouchers through regulated institutions, which has improved leather quality albeit with reduced overall volume.
He expects a further 20 per cent decline in leather prices during the Eid period, driven by increased supply and ongoing quality concerns. Cow and buffalo hides are currently selling for between LE250 and LE500, depending on quality.
He said 40 per cent of the hides processed in Egypt are consumed by the domestic leather goods industry, while the remaining 60 per cent are exported to international markets.
To restore Egypt’s reputation in global leather markets, both industry experts called for the strict enforcement of the ban on manual slaughter and tighter market regulation. They also stressed the importance of consistent livestock vaccinations by the Ministry of Agriculture.
The relocation of leather production to the Robbiki Leather City has introduced advanced manufacturing technologies, helping to enhance output quality. But due to the scarcity of premium hides, tanneries are operating at just 50 per cent capacity, Ahmed Al-Gabbas said.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 5 June, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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