Following a recent report outlining the future of sustainable luxury materials, Volvo Cars has committed to outfitting all of its upcoming electric vehicles with leather-free materials. This ethical stance by the legacy automaker comes from an aspiration to promote animal welfare and sustainability, by using recycled materials that remain high-quality.
Volvo is a global legacy automaker making large strides toward electrification and carbon neutrality across its different marques and production processes. In May, we reported that Volvo Group had achieved its first carbon-neutral car plant in Sweden, part of previously laid plans to become completely climate neutral by 2040.
Another part of Volvo’s climate goals includes ensuring half of its global vehicle sales become electric by 2025 and strictly selling EVs by 2030. This includes the XC40 Recharge, a fully-electric version of its previous ICE model by the same name.
The electric XC40 will be followed by other BEVs, including the C40 Recharge and an upcoming electrified version of the XC90 SUV. Furthering on its climate pledge, Volvo is also considering the welfare of animals and sustainable means of acquiring and implementing sustainable materials.
These leather-free materials will be present on all Volvo EVs moving forward, beginning with the C40 Recharge.
Volvo Cars vows to be leather-free in all upcoming electric vehicles
In a recent press release, Volvo Cars shared plans to be entirely leather-free throughout the interior of all upcoming electric vehicles.
The Swedish automaker’s move toward leather-free interiors is driven by concerns surrounding the negative environmental impacts of cattle farming, including deforestation.
To combat this, Volvo Cars will offer future customers high-quality, sustainable materials made from bio-based and recycled sources as an alternative to leather.
The announcement also follows a recent report issued by Volvo Cars titled The Rise of Conscious Design, in collaboration with a trend forecasting company called The Future Laboratory.
The non-leather options will debut in Volvo’s upcoming C40 Recharge EV including Nordico, a new material created by Volvo made from recycled PET bottles, bio-attributed material from sustainable forests in Sweden and Finland, and corks recycled from the wine industry.
By 2025, Volvo aims to have 25% of the material in new vehicles to consist of recycled and bio-based content and looks to become a fully circular business by 2040.
As part of Volvo’s further climate action plans, it is also strategizing to have all its immediate suppliers use 100% renewable energy by 2025.
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Author: Scooter Doll
Source: Electrek
