New materials company Ananas Anam is using pineapple waste to create a new material that provides an animal-friendly alternative to leather. The material uses fine cellulose fibers extracted from pineapple leaves – which are considered an agricultural by-product that is often burned or left to rot. An estimated 40,000 tonnes of this pineapple waste is generated globally each year. Piñatex utilizes waste taken from pineapple plantations in the Philippines, with local factories separating the strands and felting them together into a non-woven fabric that can be used for clothes, footwear or furniture.