MIL-OSI Export

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bjorn Sturmberg, Senior Research Fellow, Battery Storage & Grid Integration Program, Australian National University

The war on Iran has made crystal clear how shaky our reliance on fossil fuels is. It’s no surprise electric vehicles and transport have become more appealing.

In Australia, sales of electric vehicles surged 40–50% in March.

That sudden surge came after ten months of relatively slow growth, during which battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles made up roughly 14% of new car sales. Industry groups saw the sluggishness as a sign of the difficulties in moving beyond early adopters to the much larger mainstream market.

This market includes people who live in apartments or inner city areas with no off street parking. In Sydney’s eastern suburbs, for example, 60% of residents live in apartments or townhouses, and 50% rent.

If the millions of Australians in this position are to go electric, they have to be confident in their ability to charge cheaply and conveniently. Relying on public fast chargers won’t be enough, as queues at chargers over Easter show.

These drivers will need a high quality public kerbside charging network, where drivers can park on a street, plug in a slower but much cheaper charger and head to the shops. In our new research, we lay out what a good kerbside network should look like.

Why kerbside chargers matter

Drivers usually charge their EVs using private chargers at home, public chargers at work or at dedicated fast or ultra-fast charging stations on roads.

Kerbside chargers represent another promising option. These small box-like chargers can be attached to power poles, streetlights or mounted on the footpath. Kerbside chargers usually run at power levels similar to home charging at around 7-22kW, though some run at 30-50kW.

There’s a trade-off between speed and cost. Ultra-fast chargers (150-400kW) can charge an average EV battery from 10 to 80% in around 30 minutes, but cost significantly more than slower chargers. Kerbside chargers cost significantly less, in part because they place far less stress on the power grid.

As well as letting drivers charge without off-street parking, kerbside chargers also build confidence for all EV drivers by expanding the charger network. If one charger is occupied, another will be free.

The federal government last year announced A$40 million in grant funding to accelerate the kerbside charging rollout, which is about to be delivered. Electricity distributors are lobbying to be able to provide this infrastructure.

How do we get the rollout right?

To find out how to optimise the kerbside charger rollout, we partnered with Waverley, Woollahra and Randwick Councils in Sydney, whose kerbside network amounts to 94 spaces. It’s well used, with 27,000 charging sessions over the six months to the end of February 2026.

The data from these chargers revealed key insights. Chargers were used much more when they were located near apartments and shops, and when signs restricted use to EVs actively using the chargers.

One surprise was the fact charger usage clustered around daytime and evenings, with little overnight.

Daytime use is good news for the power grid, as it makes sense to charge EVs when floods of cheap solar are being generated. This should lead to lower charging prices during these times.

But it’s less than ideal that a third of total charger use took place during evenings, when the power grid is experiencing peak demand.

As more and more EVs appear on the roads, evening demand from chargers may rise too. Meeting this demand could require expensive grid upgrades.

Optimising the kerbside network

There’s usually a lot of flexibility in when drivers charge their EVs for daily or weekly use. Many EVs can even be set to charge when power is cheapest.

The challenge is how to get people (and vehicles) to respond to this flexibility and how to coordinate their actions at scale. One method could be to set higher prices for kerbside charging during times of peak demand.

Higher prices during evening peaks for EV charging at home could also encourage drivers to avoid peak demand, though this should ideally apply only to EV charging, not cooking dinner.

People want faster kerbside chargers

Most existing or planned kerbside chargers rely on slower, low power AC chargers (7-11 kW) able to charge an average EV from 10 to 80% in around six hours.

These are the default for kerbside charging because they are cheap and provide the same charging experience as in homes and workplaces. They work well for those who live nearby and can charge over longer periods such as across a day or overnight.

But the Sydney council data showed a clear preference for higher power DC chargers (30-50 kW) able to charge an average EV battery from 10 to 80% in two hours.

These chargers are best located near services which take 1-2 hours to complete, or near apartment blocks where many local drivers can take short turns charging.

On average, the faster DC charger sites were used four times a day, compared to once a day for slower AC chargers. Because DC chargers deliver energy much faster, each one delivered five times more energy (100 kWh per day) on average.

This means these more expensive DC chargers can be the most economic option for kerbside charging. Their higher throughput also makes them space efficient, requiring fewer contentious dedicated EV parking spaces.

Our analysis shows DC sites are most effective when coupled with two hour parking restrictions rather than allowing a four hour stay, as this reduces EVs overstaying once fully charged.

In response, the three Sydney councils have deployed more DC chargers at new sites and upgraded some existing sites.

At present, many plans for new public kerbside chargers still focus on slower AC chargers, many without dedicated EV parking spaces.

Our analysis suggests dedicated EV parking spaces are essential, and faster DC chargers should play a more prominent role. These are popular with drivers, have better economics, and require fewer dedicated EV parking spaces.

– ref. Growing EV popularity is leading to queues at fast chargers. Could a kerbside charger network help? – https://theconversation.com/growing-ev-popularity-is-leading-to-queues-at-fast-chargers-could-a-kerbside-charger-network-help-279563

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/07/growing-ev-popularity-is-leading-to-queues-at-fast-chargers-could-a-kerbside-charger-network-help-279563/

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Aya S. Chacar, Professor of International Business, Florida International University

The global energy crisis caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is only the beginning of the economic cost of the war with Iran.

I study how institutions affect businesses and supply chains, and I expect food prices to rise next, with high prices lasting even after whatever point hostilities end.

Along with about 20% of the world’s crude oil trade and a similar share of the world’s liquefied natural gas shipments, shipping traffic through the strait also carries roughly a third of internationally traded fertilizer, which is key to bountiful crops around the world.

Modern agriculture depends on precise timing of delivering nutrients to plants. When fertilizer arrives late or becomes too expensive to buy in sufficient quantities, farmers are left to either reduce the amount they use, plant fewer crops or switch to crops that need less fertilizer. Each option reduces overall productivity, cutting supplies of basic foods, feed for livestock and key ingredients used in a wide range of food products.

Ultimately, with corn prices rising, summer barbecues may taste a bit different or cost more. Corn on the cob may not be cheap, nor will corn-fed beef. In addition, many store-bought condiments, soft drinks and other food products are made with high-fructose corn syrup and will also cost more.

3 main crops, 3 nutrients needed

Three staple crops – corn, wheat and rice – supply more than half of the world’s dietary calories.

To maximize production, those crops need three main nutrients: nitrogen, phosphate and potassium. Nitrogen helps plants grow. Phosphorus helps transport energy within plant cells and is critical for early root growth and the formation of seeds and fruit. Potassium helps plants conserve water and boosts protein content.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has reduced the supply and increased the cost of all three.

Natural gas, which determines 70% to 90% of the cost of producing nitrogen fertilizer, has seen a 20% drop in production due to the war and price increases up to 70%. To preserve its own supplies, Russia has suspended exports of ammonium nitrate, another nitrogen source for fertilizer.

In a similar effort, China, the world’s largest phosphate producer, has blocked phosphate exports, removing 25% of the global supply.

Potash, the potassium-rich component of fertilizers, has also been in short supply in recent years, in part because of economic sanctions on Belarus and Russia, which are major potash producers.

As a consequence, fertilizer prices have risen globally. In the U.S., some fertilizers rose more than 40% in just one month after the war’s start in late February 2026.

Affecting farmers first

Cereal plants absorb the vast majority of their nitrogen needs during their early growth. Applying fertilizer later in the growth cycle is less effective.

Reducing nitrogen application by 10% to 15%, or delaying application by two to four weeks, can reduce corn yields by 10% to 25%.

Producing less corn and wheat reduces not only food available for humans but also food for livestock. Increased fertilizer costs and reduced grain supplies increase the price of raising livestock, making meat and animal products more expensive.

When feed costs become unsustainable, farmers may be forced to kill or sell off the breeding cows and sows that represent the future of the food supply. In the U.S., a combination of persistent drought and high costs in 2022 forced producers to kill 13.3% of the national beef cow herd, the highest proportion ever. As a result, the U.S. beef cattle inventory shrank to its lowest level since 1962, a problem that restricts beef supplies for years.

Ultimately, the costs are passed to consumers. In 2012, when a historic Midwest drought slashed corn yields by 13%, it triggered a surge in feed prices, and U.S. poultry prices rose 20%.

More money can’t fix this problem

In mid-March 2026, the U.S. fertilizer supply was around 75% of normal levels. That’s right at the beginning of the time when Corn Belt farmers typically prepare their soil for planting, including the first applications of fertilizer. Subsequent fertilizer applications typically come from mid-April to early May and between late May and mid-June.

Farmers who fear not being able to optimize their corn yields may decide to plant less corn or switch crops and plant soybeans, which need less fertilizer. Either would reduce the corn supply.

Government loan guarantees and aid packages may help farmers cover higher costs, but they cannot address timing if enough fertilizer simply isn’t available when it is needed.

Hitting home

American consumers aren’t facing the gas and food shortages or power outages other countries are seeing from the war, but they will be hit in the pocketbook. U.S. prices for gas and jet fuel are already climbing. The effects on the food supply take longer to appear, but they are coming.

Even when crops are bountiful in the U.S., consumers are not immune to global economic forces. A smaller 2026 crop, with rising demand for livestock feed in some of the most populous countries, including China and India, will put pressure on global corn prices, affecting everyone regardless of their nationality.

In March 2026, the U.S. Department of Agriculture used data from before the Iran war to project a 3.1% average increase for all food prices.

The question for consumers is how much of the rise in corn prices will be passed to the consumer, and how fast.

USDA research shows that the speed and extent of changes in food prices vary widely by food category and the level of processing involved in making the food. Other factors also play a role, such as inventory levels, perishability and market competition. When farm prices change, wholesale prices usually adjust within the first month, but retail prices often take longer – sometimes two to four months.

Corn tortillas and other relatively lightly processed corn foods are more likely to show price responses within a few months after corn prices increase. Adjustments to cereals or poultry prices will take a little longer. Changes in the cost of livestock products such as beef will take longer, because there are more steps between the purchase of feed corn and the sale of the meat to consumers.

Other indirect costs, related to the cost of fuel and packaging, tend to hit later. Producers often absorb the price increases in the short term, but some increases are already in the works. For instance, transport companies are adding fuel surcharges on freight shipments.

Food price hikes hit low-income households harder than high-income households, because people with lower incomes spend larger shares of their money on food and housing. For these households, even relatively affordable proteins, such as chicken, may become harder to purchase regularly.

A global food emergency

The cost and availability of fertilizer will affect the whole world. More than 300 million people worldwide already do not have enough food. The U.N. World Food Program predicts an additional 45 million could join them by the end of 2026 if the conflict in the Middle East continues into the middle of the year.

Crop yields in India and Brazil in 2026 are expected to be lower than normal. East African farmers struggled to afford fertilizer even before the crisis and will likely have to make do with even less.

These problems may seem removed for most Americans, but food prices are global in nature, and people in the U.S. will soon face these additional costs of the war.

– ref. Hormuz closure threatens the global food supply – why grocery price hikes are coming – https://theconversation.com/hormuz-closure-threatens-the-global-food-supply-why-grocery-price-hikes-are-coming-279899

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/07/hormuz-closure-threatens-the-global-food-supply-why-grocery-price-hikes-are-coming-279899/

By Brett Wilkins

Greenpeace International has announced that the MY Arctic Sunrise — one of its largest vessels — will be taking part in the upcoming Global Sumud Flotilla relaunch in order “to directly challenge Israel’s ongoing blockade of aid to Gaza”.

The green group said the Arctic Sunrise, an icebreaker that’s been part of Greenpeace’s fleet since 1995, will be “sailing alongside more than 70 vessels and over 1000 participants” in the second Global Sumud Flotilla, which is scheduled to set sail from Barcelona on April 12, with subsequent stops in Syracuse, Italy, and Lerapetra, Greece en route to Gaza.

Greenpeace said the Arctic Sunrise “is providing operational and technical support” for the flotilla.

“The devastation inflicted on Gaza has become a dangerous doctrine of impunity, now spreading to Lebanon through relentless destruction and deepening human suffering,” Greenpeace Middle East and North Africa executive director Ghiwa Nakat said in a statement.

“The Greenpeace ship is joining this people-led mission to demand safe, unhindered humanitarian access to Gaza and to challenge the illegal blockade that continues to devastate civilian life.

“We stand firmly against war crimes, deliberate starvation, ethnic cleansing, genocide, and ecocide,” Nakat added.

“This flotilla is a call to governments around the world to end their silence, protect humanitarian action, and act with urgency and principle to uphold international law, human dignity, and justice.”

Specialised medical care
Global Sumud Flotilla organisers said the 2026 mission will focus on specialised medical care, with more than 1000 healthcare professionals aiming to deliver lifesaving medicines and equipment to Gaza, where 29 months of Israeli war and siege have left the Palestinian exclave’s medical infrastructure in ruins.

Last year, dozens of boats carrying hundreds of activists from over 40 nations took part in the last Global Sumud Flotilla — sumud means “perseverance” in Arabic — as it attempted to break Israel’s naval blockade and deliver desperately needed humanitarian aid including food, medicines, and baby formula to starving Gazans amid a growing famine.

Israeli forces intercepted and seized the flotilla vessels in international waters in early October, arresting all aboard the boats and temporarily jailing them in Israel, where some — including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg — said they were physically and psychologically abused by their captors.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition has made numerous attempts to break Israel’s blockade by sea, all of which ended in more or less the same way.

In 2010, Israeli forces raided one of the first convoys carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza by sea. The Israeli attackers killed nine volunteers aboard the MV Mavi Marmara, including Turkish-American teenager Furkan Doğan and a 10th died later.

Numerous experts and the entire United Nations Security Council — except the United States — have called the starvation of Gaza deliberately created by Israel, whose Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and former Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, are wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder and forced starvation.

Israel — whose assault and siege of Gaza have left more than 250,000 Palestinians dead or wounded — is also facing a genocide case in the International Court of Justice filed by South Africa and formally supported by nearly 20 countries, including Spain, the mission’s country of departure.

Cycle of destruction
“At this time of escalating war, triggered by US and Israeli militaries and cascading into a cycle of destruction and pain across the Middle East, we are honoured to answer the call to join the Sumud Flotilla,” Greenpeace Spain executive director Eva Saldaña said yesterday.

“While world governments have lacked the courage and conviction to uphold international law and their obligation to prevent genocide in Gaza, the Sumud Flotilla has been a shining light of humanitarian solidarity and a symbol of hope in action.”

Global Sumud Flotilla leaders applauded Greenpeace’s decision to participate in its 2026 mission.

“Greenpeace’s history of defending the seas, confronting injustice, and taking action in defence of life makes them a powerful addition to our 2026 spring mission,” said Global Sumud Flotilla steering committee member Susan Abdullah.

“We sail together in the same direction, with a shared determination to help break Israel’s illegal siege of Gaza.”

Republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/07/greenpeaces-arctic-sunrise-to-join-global-sumud-flotilla-mission-to-gaza/

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Celia Harris, Associate Professor in Cognitive Science, Western Sydney University

Whether it’s riding a bike or knitting a sweater, there are some tasks you do without thinking.

These are commonly associated with “muscle memory”, the idea your body can remember how to perform complex tasks and, over time, learn to do them automatically.

But do your muscles actually have a memory? And what role does your brain play?

Let’s unpack the science.

What is ‘muscle memory’?

In popular culture, we usually associate “muscle memory” with tasks we do, or skills we learn, without much conscious thought. This could include riding a bike, playing a musical instrument or even tying your shoelaces.

However, cognitive scientists call this type of memory “procedural memory” rather than “muscle memory”. And while it doesn’t always feel like it, procedural memory involves our brain as well as our muscles.

The term “muscle memory” may also be used in a more literal sense to describe how muscles seem to get stronger or bigger if they have been trained before. Research supports this idea, suggesting prior training can speed up muscle growth. It may do this by changing how muscle cells function or are structured. However, scientists still don’t know exactly how this all works. In any case, it seems these changes do not allow muscles to “store” memories or information in the same way as the brain.

How does procedural memory work?

Scientists describe procedural memory as a kind of “non-declarative memory”, meaning it’s memory based on actions, rather than words. This means it can be difficult to share skills you might’ve learnt through procedural memory.

For example, imagine you’re teaching a child to ride a bike. If you hop on the bike yourself, it’s easy to perform all the correct steps (holding the handlebars, mounting the bike, pushing the pedals) at the right times. But it’s much harder to describe that process to another person, especially if you only use words.

Research suggests repetition is the best and fastest way to improve your procedural memory. When we learn a new skill, it initially takes a lot of effort. This is because you need to actively control every action to make sure you’re doing things in the right way and order.

Over time, these skills can become so automatic you barely think while doing them. For example, you might drive home without remembering which route you took. That’s because you’re performing a series of actions you’ve done hundreds of times before.

Maintaining your procedural memory requires multiple parts of your brain to work together. This is because we use different neural processes as we shift from actively learning a skill to acting more automatically.

When you learn something new, you’re largely using the pre-frontal and fronto-parietal regions of the brain. These are associated with attention, memory and deliberate, effortful thinking.

When you start repeating and practising a skill, you instead rely on sensorimotor circuits. These process the sensory information you receive from the outside world, and help your brain determine the best physical response. In this way, these circuits allow you to do complex tasks with less conscious effort.

What’s the impact of conditions such as dementia?

What’s fascinating about procedural memory is it’s largely unaffected by cognitive decline.

For people with dementia or other kinds of cognitive impairment, the hardest tasks are generally those that require conscious effort. However, they often retain more automatic skills that they’ve developed over a lifetime. This is why you may meet people with dementia who can still knit or dance a tango, despite having trouble remembering their loved ones’ names.

Research suggests music taps into procedural memory in an especially powerful way. One Canadian study found people with Alzheimer’s dementia, an irreversible brain condition which affects memory, cognition and behaviour, recognised words better when they were sung as opposed to spoken.

Procedural memory may also help people with cognitive conditions learn new skills, as well as retain old ones. In one Australian study, researchers wanted to know if a person with severe Alzheimer’s dementia could learn a new song. They found that a 91-year-old woman with severe Alzheimer’s, who’d never been a musician, was able to learn a brand-new song. While she couldn’t remember the words during a memory test, she could sing the song again two weeks later.

Can I improve my procedural memory?

Unfortunately, there’s no quick and easy way to strengthen your procedural memory.

To begin, you have to push through the initial phase of learning a new skill, which often requires significant effort and attention. This is where practice comes in. Practising a new skill will help your brain depend less on its attention-focused frontal regions, and rely more on those responsible for motor functions.

To make your practice as effective as possible, it may be worth spacing it out over multiple sessions. This forces you to deliberately bring a memory back to mind and actively reconstruct it, even after you’ve stopped thinking about it. As a result, you’ll become better at forming and retaining long-term memories. Sleeping after each practice session may also help. Research suggests this is because sleep helps you remember and retain new skills.

While improving procedural memory takes time and effort, it’s well worth it. Any new skills you learn will enrich your life. And even if your cognitive health declines, the skills you practice over a lifetime can keep you connected to the people and memories you value.

– ref. What is ‘muscle memory’ and can I improve mine? – https://theconversation.com/what-is-muscle-memory-and-can-i-improve-mine-277471

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/07/what-is-muscle-memory-and-can-i-improve-mine-277471/

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Donne Potter, Professor of Public Health, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University

A high prevalence of long COVID is perhaps the starkest reminder that the pandemic is far from over.

The latest New Zealand Health Survey confirms the impacts of the COVID pandemic continue, six years after the initial outbreak. The data show most New Zealanders (77.7% or about 3.3 million people) have had COVID at least once.

Many people reported changes in health after COVID, but about one in 11 adults (401,000 people) described symptoms lasting three months or longer. These were health impacts they had not experienced prior to the COVID infection and could not be explained by a different diagnosis.

Women were more likely to report symptoms of long COVID – about 1 in 7 women (14.9%) compared to 1 in 12 men (8.5%). Only among people above the age of 65 were the rates similar in women and men.

One in six Māori adults (15.5%) reported having had long COVID symptoms, compared to one in nine non-Māori adults (11.3%), and among people living with disabilities, one in four (22.8%) experienced lasting symptoms.

Overall, 11.9% of adults who contracted COVID developed long COVID following the acute phase, and almost half (48.5%) of them were still experiencing symptoms at the time they completed the survey.

New Zealand must take long COVID seriously. Denial of these impacts and delays in providing appropriate care mean New Zealand is missing opportunities to limit harms to individuals and society.

What these findings mean for New Zealand

The latest results are backed up by evidence from international studies and previous health survey research, which shows that a fifth of children in New Zealand reported persisting symptoms after COVID infection.

Self-reported surveys can either under-count or over-count prevalence, but the New Zealand health survey is designed to be representative. This is currently our best estimate of long COVID in New Zealand adults but is probably an under-count because the risk of developing long COVID increases with reinfection.

Since the survey was completed, there have been many more COVID cases and New Zealand is now experiencing a ninth wave, which means we can expect further long COVID cases.

Long COVID can affect every organ, including the cardiovascular, immune and nervous systems.

The main symptoms include cognitive dysfunction (brain fog), fatigue and post-exertional malaise. But COVID infection can also cause chronic disease without symptoms, with “silent” cell and organ damage that may predispose people to later illness.

The survey findings are concerning. The accepted definition of a rare disease is one case in 2,000 people. If a condition is more common than that, the number of people affected becomes high enough to need specific health services.

The long COVID prevalence of 9.2% of all adults in New Zealand is more than a hundred times greater than this rare-disease threshold.

The practical implications are clear. Long COVID is a health burden which must be addressed by specific health-service resources.

The cost of delayed action

More than 12 months ago, we published an extended analysis of the state of long COVID in Aotearoa New Zealand. We noted it remained a risk following any COVID infection or reinfection and carried a substantially increased risk of sudden death and organ damage.

We also noted that vaccination reduces the risk.

We urged the government to establish a coordinated response that included treatment and support services, public health and social measures to protect the community, a programme to maximise vaccine coverage, a clear information campaign and targeted surveillance – and more research.

Very little has been instituted. This indifference extends even to the data the government itself has collected. The data collection for this latest health survey was completed in 2025, and it is concerning the findings have only been released now, and only after a request under the Official Information Act.

These data have also been publicised largely by the coordinating group for Aotearoa COVID Action, not by Health New Zealand.

Inaction on respiratory infections is costing us dearly, both in terms of people’s health and a loss in productivity. Long COVID is still very challenging to treat but already some new approaches are looking promising. Much can be done to prevent new cases and to support those already affected.

Slowing the spread of COVID through communities is an important and feasible goal. One of the most basic but effective measures is promoting a culture of staying home when sick.

Providing a good standard of indoor air quality in public settings through a mix of ventilation, air filtration and specific ultraviolet lighting is highly achievable and has multiple benefits in reducing sickness rates from other respiratory infections.

Recent research shows COVID vaccines are still able to deliver a meaningful reduction in the severity of acute infection and risk of long COVID.

Running alongside prevention is the need to support those already affected by establishing and maintaining specific tailored care for symptom management and financial safety nets for those unable to work.

Policymakers and the public are reluctant to even speak of COVID in the present tense, but the evidence shows it is still a major infectious disease in Aotearoa New Zealand, with wide-ranging negative impacts.

There is a mutual support group for people with Long COVID but the government can and should be doing more to protect the population and limit this social and economic harm.

– ref. Almost 200,000 New Zealanders are now living with long COVID – where is the government plan? – https://theconversation.com/almost-200-000-new-zealanders-are-now-living-with-long-covid-where-is-the-government-plan-278973

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/07/almost-200-000-new-zealanders-are-now-living-with-long-covid-where-is-the-government-plan-278973/

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Caroline Swee Lin Tan, Associate Professor in Fashion Entrepreneurship, RMIT University

In a high-end fashion store or luxury car showroom, the term “vegan leather” sends a strong message of quality. For many shoppers, it promises the look and feel of real leather without using animal skins. As brands move away from animal leather, “vegan” has come to suggest something that is both kinder to animals and better for the planet.

However, the reality is more complicated. While these materials remove animal products, they often replace one environmental problem with another. Vegan leather is not one material, but a broad label that covers everything from plastic coatings to plant-based surfaces, which is why regulators are starting to question vague green claims.

The appeal of leather alternatives is easy to understand. Concerns about animal welfare, climate change and deforestation have pushed shoppers and brands towards options that seem more responsible.

As a result, “vegan leather” is often seen as the better choice – even though how long it lasts, and where it ends up, is rarely questioned.

The rise of synthetic hide

For decades, these materials were known as “pleather” or vinyl. Today, better finishes have turned thin plastic films into convincing leather lookalikes.

Most vegan leathers consist of polyurethane (PU) or polyvinyl chloride (PVC) coatings bonded to fabric backings. They are waterproof and easy to emboss, but they are also petroleum-derived plastics.

When the surface of a PU‑coated bag cracks or peels, the damage is more than cosmetic. As the coating breaks down, it sheds microplastics into the environment.

The plastic underneath the plants

In response to concerns about plastic, new fake leather materials have been developed from pineapples, mushrooms, apples, grapes and even cacti. These bio-based options are often sold as the sustainable answer.

However, using a plant does not automatically make a product better for the environment.

The issue lies in how these materials are made. A “pineapple leather” shoe may be praised for its plant fibres, but those fibres are usually held together with plastic resins to make the material durable.

The result is a mixed material that cannot be recycled in Australia, even though marketing often focuses on the plant ingredient and hides the plastic underneath.

Plant leather doesn’t last long

A key challenge with many vegan leather alternatives is strength. Raw plant fibres are too weak to handle the repeated wear and pressure faced by shoes, bags and car seats. To improve performance, manufacturers layer plant materials onto plastic binders or polyester backings.

Even then, many of these materials break down sooner than real leather and cannot be properly repaired. Traditional leather can be conditioned, patched and allowed to age over time, but plant-based alternatives tend to fail once the surface coating cracks or peels.

A mushroom- or apple-based bag also cannot be composted because of the plastic beneath its surface, meaning it reaches disposal much sooner. Some plant-based vegan leather products have reported lifespans of as little as two years.

This points to a broader issue. In a circular economy that prioritises reuse, repair and material recovery, sustainability is about keeping products in use and at their highest value for as long as possible.

Brands must walk the talk

The problems hidden by elusive marketing labels are becoming harder to ignore. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has made it clear broad labels such as “sustainable” or “eco-friendly” must be backed up with evidence.

If brands use the word “vegan” to suggest lower environmental impact, they must be able to prove that claim by looking at the product’s full life cycle.

At the same time, the Productivity Commission’s 2026 inquiry into the circular economy highlights Australia’s growing problem with products that cannot be recycled. As product stewardship schemes expand, durability, recyclability and what happens to a product at the end of its life will matter as much as animal welfare.

The ethical distinction

None of this means animal leather comes without environmental or chemical costs. These include methane emissions from livestock and the toxic chemicals used in tanning. For many consumers, avoiding animal-derived materials is still an important ethical choice.

However, “vegan” and “sustainable” are not the same thing. One describes what has been left out of a product, while the other describes how that product performs over its entire life. Treating the two as interchangeable can replace meaningful progress with reassuring labels.

The takeaway is a call for material honesty. Sustainability can’t be reduced to a single word or ingredient. It’s measured by how long a product stays useful before it needs to be thrown away. A bag that avoids animal materials but breaks down within a few years simply creates waste sooner.

If vegan alternatives are going to be sustainable, they must be designed to last. Sustainability is measured in years of use, not words on a tag.

– ref. ‘Vegan leather’ isn’t as sustainable or eco‑friendly as brands might claim – https://theconversation.com/vegan-leather-isnt-as-sustainable-or-eco-friendly-as-brands-might-claim-278548

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/07/vegan-leather-isnt-as-sustainable-or-eco-friendly-as-brands-might-claim-278548/