Water Fact Sheet: Leather Handbag | Everyday Goods Water Facts

4,517

gallons of water per item, global average

One item: one leather handbag (about 2.2 lb leather)

The same volume as

About this figure A leather handbag using about 2.2 pounds of bovine leather embeds about 4,500 gallons, driven mostly by the water and feed used to raise cattle. Source: Water Footprint Network (Mekonnen and Hoekstra). Figures are global-average total water footprints (green, blue and grey water) per item. They are not California-specific and are on a different basis from the crop sheets, which show California irrigation water applied per serving.

Sources

Global-average water footprints per item: Water Footprint Network (Mekonnen and Hoekstra) for cotton, leather and paper goods, applied to typical item mass; item-specific life-cycle assessments for the smartphone, silicon wafer, desktop computer, car, disposable diaper and bottled water, as named on each sheet.

Figures as of September 10, 2026.

How to cite

Everyday Goods Water Fact Sheet: Leather Handbag. conciseVerbosity, September 10, 2026. https://api.conciseverbosity.com/water-facts/goods/leather-handbag.html