Ostrich leather quality: a review

Abstract

This review summarises the research that has been published on factors that influence the various aspects of ostrich leather quality, a vital aspect to the economic viability of the commercial ostrich industry. The review is divided into three main sections: discussing intrinsic, pre-slaughter and post-slaughter factors that influence leather quality. Only one literature source that investigated the morphology of ostrich skin could be found. The high vascularity near the surface of the skin was indicated in making the skin susceptible to bruising, which influences skin quality, while the strength and flexibility of ostrich leather was attributed to the three-dimensional cross-weave arrangement of collagen fibres. Various studies reported a high degree of variation in quality within and between ostrich skins. The potential of genetic selection for improved skin quality was also considered, and it was demonstrated that most ostrich leather traits exhibited significant genetic variation. Findings on pre-slaughter factors, such as the effects of age, weight, nutrition and management practices, are also summarised. Few research reports on post-slaughter factors that influence leather quality were found. A few studies looked at the effect of storage on ostrich skin quality, but literature on the effect of processing techniques are lacking. Research priorities identified include the development of methods to assess skin quality on-farm and finding objective methods of evaluating ostrich leather quality.