News of the Association

1 March 2007

ICPI joins GERIC

On 1st March 2007 the deadline expired for GERIC Members to cast their vote on ICPI’s application for Membership in GERIC.

ICPI is the Romanian Institute that hosts the domestic Leather Technology Centre. Led by its Director, Mrs Luminita Albu, it has collaborated with GERIC Institutes for the last decade in a number of EU sponsored projects notably in the field of sectoral education and training. ICPI produced the Romanian version of the EUREKA Glossary of Leather Terms and is currently participating as Romanian partner in the CTIC led EU project ONE LEATHER TRAINING in the framework of the EU Leonardo Programme. During the last ten years ICPI has also served as a bridge to the Romanian Leather Industry providing COTANCE assistance in liaising with its representatives and organizing Workshops and Conferences in the framework of the PERFECT-LINK Project (EU Phare BSP Programme) and in the context of the EU Social Dialogue facilitating the Social Partners of the Romanian Leather Industry to assuming their respective roles in the development of the Leather sector.

ICPI is located in Bucharest and is fitted with Laboratories for Leather Research and performing all kind of physical and chemical testing for the Tanning industry. Romanian leather research is particularly successful in the application of results in the area of gelatin and collagen with the development of cosmetic and medical uses.

GERIC is the Grouping of European Leather Technology Centres. Chaired by President Alcino Martinho (CTIC – Portugal) for his second consecutive term it constitutes a living network of European Leather Technology Centers focusing on providing the leather industry the technological and educational tools required for a sustainable development. GERIC is formed by the following leading Leather Technology Centres: AIICA (Igualada, Spain), CTC (Lyon, France), CTIC (Alcanena, Portugal), ELKEDE (Athens, Greece), SSIP (Naples, Italy), LGR (Reutlingen, Germany).

GERIC constitutes the technological backbone of Europe’s Leather industry. Its secretariat is managed by COTANCE, the Brussel’s based representative body of European Tanners. GERIC meets regularly for exchanging information of crucial importance for maintaining the leadership of Leather research European based. In a series of projects that have gained the financial support of the EU and National Research funding, GERIC has produced numerous tools for improving the technological performance of the leather industry and the training skills of its human resources. GERIC institutes provide testing, training, consulting, project and research services to domestic and foreign customers with guaranteed superior quality.

GERIC Members expressed unanimously their agreement to enlarge the Grouping to embrace ICPI as a new full member.

ICPI thus becomes GERIC’s first member in Eastern Europe. ICPI’s accession is an asset for the Grouping as it reaches out to the learned society in new EU member States. It is also and foremost an advantage for the Romanian Leather Industry that has gained through ICPI a channel of communication to the combined wealth of Leather Science developed by Europe’s Leather Technology Centres.

February 2007

COTANCE meets in Council

On 16 February 2007 the representatives of the leather industry from Hungary (BCE), Spain (CEC-FECUR), France (FFTM), Finland (FLIA), the Netherlands (FNL), Sweden (SG), United Kingdom (UKLF), Italy (UNIC), Belgium (UNITAN), Germany (VDL) and Switzerland (VSG) met in Brussels under the Chairmanship of Mr Jean-Claude Ricomard (Tanneries Roux, France) for their early year COTANCE Council Session.

They reviewed the state of the leather trade concluding that 2006 has resulted for European Tanners much better than 2005. The recession that has adversely affected leather markets in the recent past seems definitively gone and economic indicators are consistently showing an improvement of the leather trade. Business for European tanners has seen a 5% increase in 2006 and the outlook for 2007 is sensibly better. Bovine leather seems taking the lead followed by the Sheep and Goat leather sector.

COTANCE Members also reviewed hides and skins availability in Europe. Slaughter figures for 2006 do not give any ground for a rise in domestic prices. As they did in the COTANCE Lausanne Council (10-11-2006), European Tanners expressed their perplexity in front of domestic raw material price increases that seem unjustified, notably in the calfskin sector.

The COTANCE Council welcomed a small delegation of the European Commission for reviewing progress on international trade issues relevant to the leather industry. Mrs Madeleine Tuininga in charge of Market Access and Industry in DG Trade, assisted by Mrs Regina Piovesana and Mrs Friederike Afokpa, reported on the adjustments of the EU’s external trade policy and on how the interests of Europe’s Leather Industry are going to be addressed in multilateral and bilateral trade negotiations. Mrs Tuininga commented that the fight against export taxes/restrictions on raw materials has reached in the EU the highest level of priority and that a policy change in that respect is out of question.

COTANCE Members drew the European Commission’s attention on the recent Brazilian impertinent move to consolidate the export tax on raw materials for the leather industry disregarding for the second consecutive time the self-imposed schedule for the dismantling of the trade barrier. European tanners denounce that export taxes on raw materials provide a subsidy to the protected leather industry that can reach up to 20% of production costs and that there are few operators on the open market capable to stand over the time such unfair competition.

COTANCE calls on the European Commission to respond with the adequate severity that the case merits for not only European Tanners will closely watch the reaction of the EU but also less fortunate developing countries counting on the EU to bring about rules that would confine the use of export taxes/restrictions to those industries and countries that really need them, notably in Africa.

 April 2006

COTANCE Spring Council meets at Lineapelle


Representatives of COTANCE member associations coming from 9 EU countries (Italy, Spain, France, UK, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Belgium and Hungary) met in Bologna on 20 April at Lineapelle under the Chairmanship of Giuseppe W. Peretti (Conceria Cristina, IT) reviewing the state of trade and the sector’s associative agenda.

They understand that the leather trade has broadly followed World trade developments, beginning 2005 with sluggish growth and then regaining momentum to end the year registering improvements. Growth in the leather trade remains however at a lower rate than in other sectors. COTANCE representatives confirm that Europe is emerging from the negative cycle that prevailed over the last few years. European Tanners still note a number of uncertainties on the horizon for 2006, with signs of a stronger order climate, confirmed at the Lineapelle Fair, mixed with fragile prospects for consumption and employment, particularly in Europe. COTANCE members understand that, at this point in time, there is no reason for a rise in raw material prices.

Developments in the WTO Round of multilateral trade negotiations were also on the COTANCE agenda. Members welcomed the Joint Statement signed by COTANCE with its US counterparts in the leather sector earlier in February and the EU proposal for a WTO Agreement to curb down export taxes (on raw materials) which was officially presented that week in Geneva. COTANCE members issued a special call to all stakeholders of the leather industry to ensure that the Doha Round delivers timely the deal on free and fair trade that the industry requires.