At UGG Since 1974, we’re not just about quality Australian made UGG boots. We are also committed to the sustainable use of Australian sheepskin, and we’re serious about the prevention of cruelty to animals and their welfare. We are one of the only companies in the world who manufacture UGG boots from ethically sourced Australian and New Zealand sheepskins – and this is a commitment that forms an important part of the core beliefs of our brand.

Leather has long been used around the world as a useful material to manufacture products from couches and chairs, to boots, belts, shoes and handbags. Sheepskin is the hide of a sheep, and all of our UGG boots are made from only the most premium quality Australian sheepskin, but there’s more to our sheepskin than just the quality.  

Here’s some information you may not know about the sheepskin we use in our Australian UGG boots:-

• We only source our sheepskin from Australian and New Zealand farmers who raise their animals for food. In other words, all of the sheepskin we use is a bi-product of the meat industry.
• We do not source our sheepskin from farmers who raise their animals for their skins.
• We do not support sheep being raised for their skin alone and strongly oppose this practice, which still occurs in many countries abroad.
• We only source our sheepskin from Australian and New Zealand farmers, both to support our local industry, but also because these countries are heavily regulated in terms of its treatment of animals.
• All of our sheepskin is sourced through modern and industry compliant farms that abide by the “Industry Animal Welfare Standard” conditions that are governed by state and federal law. For further information on the Standard, please visit amic.org.au
• The sheepskin we use comes from sheep that have been raised only in Australia or New Zealand. They are not exported overseas before being used for their meat or hides. 
• Whilst the meat industry continues to produce to meet demand, there will be a surplus of hides (like sheepskin, cow hide and leather) that can either be discarded, or ethically used to manufacture quality products.

Because we only use Australian and New Zealand sheepskin that is strictly a bi-product of the meat industry, we pay more for our hides, rather than sourcing them offshore from countries who do not protect the welfare of our livestock. We also work with imperfections in our hides by cutting around things like seed holes and scratches – because these imperfections are inevitable when using a product not specifically bred for its skin. It is a measure we are prepared to take to support a sustainable industry over one which breed animals purely for skin.

Whilst we source from different Australian suppliers as and when needed in accordance with the principles above, we buy the majority our sheepskin from a leading Australian wholesaler and distributor in Victoria in a finished, treated and tanned condition. As sheepskin tanneries are now virtually non-existent in Australia, our suppliers generally manage the tanning of their Australian and New Zealand in various offshore processing plants in accordance with environmental tanning regulations and requirements.

So while we are passionate about delivering Australian made products and educating our customers to consider where the products they buy are made, we also want our customers to think about where the material in the products they buy have come from. In the case of our sheepskin, it is only from Australia or New Zealand, only from regulated animal welfare farms, and only from farms who breed sheep for food.

We don’t believe that any animal should be bred simply for its skin, and you won’t ever find us supporting or sourcing products from a farm that engages in this practice.

Our commitment to animal welfare and ethically sourced sheepskin is well renowned in Australia, so much so that we have partnered with Australia’s most esteemed wildlife conservation and refuge park, Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. As an official partner of the Sanctuary and sponsor of the Sheep Shearing Show, we have been recognised for our stance on animal welfare and ensuring that our animals are treated humanely, and the industry is a sustainable one moving into the future.