Versace Bans Use of Kangaroo Skin Amid Pressure From LAV

The Italian fashion house Versace halted the use of kangaroo skin in its leather products.

The move comes amid pressure from the animal rights group LAV (Anti Vivisection League, established in 1977), which announced that more than 2.3 million Australian kangaroos were killed every year for industrial use.

"The fires that are devastating Australia add to the massacres of hunting, with dramatic consequences for the kangaroo population," LAV said in a statement, adding that Versace confirmed over mail that it stopped using kangaroo skin in 2019.

According to data, the EU is the largest market for Australia’s kangaroo meat with Italy being the biggest importer of the leather to satisfy its massive fashion industry demands.

The ongoing Australian fires have resulted in the death of a huge number of animals, including kangaroos, and others. "It is a real environmental disaster that risks exterminating many species," LAV added.

Meanwhile LAV urged the Italian government to ban the import of kangaroos and invited the Australian ambassador to Italy to support the prohibition against slaughtering kangaroos.

Contributed by Taarek Refaat