Companies that make products from leather are facing tough times: the supply of leather is dwindling as fewer people eat meat, with the US cattle population dropping by 32% in the last few decades. Meanwhile, demand for leather hasn’t followed suit. The global luggage and leather goods industry is predicted to grow at a compounded rate of 4.5% annually through 2018, in part as a result of growth in the travel industry and increasing consumer wealth.
Modern Meadow, a New York startup, is hoping it can find the solution to this problem at the bottom of a petri dish. Read more at the Guardian.