Limiting Microbial Activity as an Alternative Approach of Bovine Hide Preservation, Part I: Efficacy of Developed Formulations

Abstract

The traditional wet salting technique of bovine hide curing requires 95% or more saturated brine solution which generates a huge amount of pollution and salinity in the form of total dissolved solids (TDS) and chlorides (Cl-) during leather processing. Therefore, much attention is currently placed on tanneries requiring reduction or eliminate the use of sodium chloride as a raw hide/skin preservative. For the preservation of hide it is essential to arrest microbial attack as the collagenbreaking enzymes called collagenase produced by the bacteria can cause serious degradation on hide which leads to the putrefaction of raw hide before converting them into leather. In this research effort, a number of formulas have been developed and evaluated for their efficacy in preserving bovine hide for 30 days or more. This attempt has been made to evolve a least chloride containing curing system for salinity abatement, where 35% saturated brine is used as the base solution. The developed formulations have been evaluated with better efficacy than the conventional technique on limiting bacterial growth, controlling yeast and mold during the storage period of cured hide. The alternative methods also offer quick rehydration of cured hide during leather processing and Airborne Ultrasonic scanning detects no detrimental impact on alternatively cured hides. Therefore, this new development is ideally suited for hide preservation through better protection of hide from microbial degradation and improved conservation of environment in compare to the traditional method.