LWG documentation should not be reduced to a single certificate. A sound review starts with the audited facility and its actual operations, then connects incoming material, output records, supplier files and customer-facing wording. This page turns LWG's public audit scope, traceability and claims guidance into a practical pre-review framework for leather-product records.
1. Confirm the audited object and operating scope
The LWG Leather Manufacturer Audit is intended for facilities processing leather. LWG's public Audit Scope describes different combinations of operations from raw, crust or tanned material through pre-tanned, tanned, crust or finished leather. The selected category must match the facility's real operations; a supplier's LWG record does not by itself place every downstream facility or product inside the same scope.
At minimum, record the facility's legal name and location, processing operations, material or hide types, audit standard and version, certificate or record identifier, current status, and any subcontracted or commissioned operations. Traders, subcontractors and commissioning manufacturers follow different LWG routes and should not be presented as the same type of facility audit.
2. Separate facility evidence from product evidence
Facility-level records may address environmental management, energy and water use, waste and effluent, emissions, chemical management, restricted substances, health and safety, social responsibility, and incoming/outgoing traceability. Product-level review asks a different question: which leather is used in a shoe, bag, watch strap or leather accessory, which facility handled it, where it sits in the chain, and whether purchasing and delivery records support that mapping.
Build a product–leather–facility–file map containing the product or style number, leather type and colour, supplier and manufacturing facility, purchase order or invoice, batch or shipment record, applicable LWG file, and the exact page wording under review. A generic supplier statement or an unverified scan cannot, on its own, substantiate every claim for a specific SKU.
3. Review the records that support traceability
Traceability is about whether the records explain one another, not how many files have been collected. Review four stages: incoming material and quantities; the facility and operations that actually processed them; outgoing batches and delivery or transaction records; and the way that material appears in the finished-product BOM and page description.
Where there is subcontracting, movement between facilities, mixed batches or parallel sourcing of different leather types, list each node and responsible entity separately. Keep the related contracts, orders, invoices and delivery records. LWG scope does not automatically replace customs requirements, product law, marketplace rules or a brand's private standard; those questions require a separate review for the target market and product.
4. Keep page claims within the evidence
A page should identify the audited facility, the relevant leather or supply-chain stage, and the file scope supporting the statement. Do not turn “a facility was audited against an LWG standard” into “the brand's products are LWG certified.” Do not extend a facility audit into claims about animal farming, slaughter, every finished-product attribute, customs clearance or marketplace outcomes.
Public references to the LWG name, marks, membership or audit outcomes must also follow LWG's Claims Framework and any applicable authorization. Unverified logo rights, grades, percentages, rankings, environmental effects, customer acceptance and sales outcomes should not be added to a product page or cover image.
5. Manual pre-submission checklist
Check each point manually: facility name, location and operations match; audit standard, record status and scope are verified; incoming, outgoing, order and BOM records connect; subcontracted or cross-facility nodes are not missing; page wording describes only substantiated entities and scope; Chinese and English express the same facts; and the image communicates record review without a seal, result cue or official mark.
This reference was prepared from LWG's public Leather Manufacturer Standard, Audit Scope, Standards & Certification, Traceability and Claims Framework materials. Greenark (Shenzhen) Certification Co., Ltd. presents it as a record-review reference; it does not replace the assessment of LWG, an independent auditor, a regulator or a marketplace.
