Evaluation of the Physical Properties of Goatskins Tanned using Banana (Musa spp.) Leaf Midrib Tannins

Vegetable tannins have been studied over the years with an aim to reduce the pollution load caused by chrome tanning. Although mimosa tannins have been utilized commercially, they are expensive and not readily available. The purpose of this study was to assess the physical properties of leather tanned with banana leaf midribs tannins in order to determine their suitability as vegetable tannins. Selected banana leaf midrib samples were collected from Gikondi village in Mukurweini, Nyeri County, Kenya. They were shade-dried and ground into powder. The skins were processed conventionally using banana leaf midribs tannins of Musa sapientum Linn. and ‘Muraru’ (AA genome), with mimosa as a control. The physical properties of the resultant leathers were determined following the standard IUP methods. It was found that Musa sapenitum Linn, ‘Muraru’ (AA genome) and mimosa-tanned leathers had average shrinkage temperatures of 80.33 ± 0.74°C, 78.67 ± 0.47°C and 81.67 ± 0.94°C, respectively. The properties of the tanned leathers were compared with those of the control-tanned leather. Assessment of the physical properties indicated that the leathers met the minimum recommended values safe for Musa sapentium Linn-tanned leather, which failed at 30,000 flexes. These results indicate that banana leaf midribs can be used as an organic tanning agent source for production of leathers from goatskins.