The Higg MSI uses a cow leather dataset created by Sphera that implements economic allocation at the slaughterhouse. The Sphera model only includes cows raised for the meat industry and does not include milk cows, so no allocation factor for milk is applied. Currently, an allocation factor of 3.6% is set for the cattle hides in the slaughterhouse in the Sphera model, while the PEFCR requires a 3.5% allocation factor. Therefore, the current difference between the environmental impact of leather using the PEF recommended allocation and the allocation in the Higg MSI dataset is marginal.
Sphera plans to update datasets to use the default allocation factor recommended by the PEFCR in the future; when available, the MSI will be updated accordingly. We are also working with the leather industry to collect and use more specific slaughterhouse data to update the allocation factor used in the Higg MSI and provide more accurate results than the default factor.
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