We have already reported on the plans of James and Katie Allen, the couple who acquired Great Cotmarsh Farm in 2023 with the aim of installing a micro-tannery on the site. To host the initiative, they rebuilt a shed in 2024 and have now submitted an application to the Wiltshire authorities for a change of use. Their proposal highlights a compelling aspect of cultural preservation: vegetable tanning is classified as an artisan craft “at risk of extinction” in the United Kingdom and, as such, deserves safeguarding.

Vegetable tanning at risk of extinction

A response from the local authority is expected by mid-June. According to local press reports, the Allen couple’s application for the conversion of the agricultural shed includes considerations relating to the supply chain. “The tannery is ancillary to the farming business”, the application states, enabling the creation of a very short supply chain “in which every bovine hide — sustainable and of high quality — can be traced back to the specific animal raised on the land”, while also encouraging similar initiatives on other farms. Among the key arguments, as noted, is cultural conservation: “Traditional oak bark tanning is now classified as critically endangered on the Heritage Crafts Red List (a charity under royal patronage). We risk losing this knowledge entirely in the United Kingdom, as the last expert tanners are retiring”.