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Turning fish into fashion - Promoting Blue Fashion to support livelihoods in Kenya

Watch how fish skin leather was transformed into outfits and accessories by Kenyan fashion designers and displayed on the runways in Nairobi during the Blue Economy Conference’s Blue Fashion show co-organized by FAO to promote Blue Fashion for Blue Growth.

Duration 15m23s

Edit Version International

Video Type Video News Release (VNR)

Date 11/28/2018 5:22 PM

File size 929.46 MB

Unique ID UF2EP2

All editorial uses permitted

Production details and shotlist

UNFAO Source FAO Video

Shotlist SHOTLIST:

Eldoret, Kenya - November 21, 2018

1.Various of Eldoret Town.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

2.Tilt-up (CU) of finished leather.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

3.SOUNDBITE (English) James Ambani, CEO-Victorian Foods, saying:

‘The idea started off with my wife exploring possibilities of making leather, and it sounded like a very crazy idea to me, but it went through phases. We got some little training from a friend who had some slight idea about it, and then from there we tried to process the leather with the little knowledge. Didn't turn out well, but later on we managed to get the right formulas, and my wife also attended some training in Singapore for how to perfect fish leather. So here we are’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

4.James Ambani, CEO Victorian Foods testing strength of leather.

5.Various of skin patterns and details of processed fish leather.

6.Various of women scraping raw skin in tannery.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

7.SOUNDBITE (English) James Ambani, CEO, Victorian Foods saying:

‘We have lots of finished products, we have shoes, we have jackets, belts, handbags, purses, the list is quite big. Also, the automobile world is looking at motor vehicle interior finished with fish leather, so it's growing. The demand is growing’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

8.Shot of table with finished leather products.

Nairobi, Kenya - November 27, 2018

9.Shots of fish leather purses and shoes.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

10.Fish leather sandals and shoes.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

11.SOUNDBITE (English) James Ambani, CEO, Victorian Foods saying:

‘The Nile Perch is quite interesting because it grows into, you know, big sizes. You get a fish that can grow as big as four feet, upto six feet mature fish, and then it is easier to work with. The leather is quite big, so even the designers have a lot of space, a lot of area, skin area to work with, so that makes it very interesting. The pattern on Nile Perch again is very beautiful, and you can do a variety of finishing with that, so i think it's a very good fish to work with on fish leather’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

12.Workers carrying large Nile Perch fish from cold freezer to washing area.

13.Various of workers scrubbing and washing Nile Perch.

14.Tilt down of Nile Perch Skin

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

15.SOUNDBITE (English) James Ambani, CEO, Victorian Foods saying:

‘Yes i believe there is going to be growing demand, because fish leather is considered exotic leather, like reptile leather, and you know the reptiles are endangered. We have crocodile leather or snake leather which is endangered, but fish leather, it's a good alternative to that. You don't require “CITES”, you know, the permit that you use to export the leather for endangered animal species, you don't need that. So i think very soon, as it gains popularity, there is going to be a lot of demand for it in the market’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

16.Various of workers weighing, skinning, filleting and processing Nile Perch fish.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

17.SOUNDBITE (English) Jamil Walji, Head Fashion Designer, JW Couture saying:

‘I was inspired actually to create garments with it, infuse our local fabric, the leso, together with the fish skin and the European materials. I wanted to bring out a combination that has never been done before, to bring out a totally new image and a new look to how we look at leather products’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

18.Jamil Walji and James Ambani looking through various fish leather products, feeling the texture, discussing.

Nairobi, Kenya - November 27, 2018

19.Jamil Walji fitting a model with his creation of a fish leather jacket.

20.Jamil Walji outfit on hanger.

21.Models backstage before fashion event.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

22.SOUNDBITE (English) Jamil Walji, Head Fashion Designer, JW Couture saying:

‘Just by sitting and feeling it inspires you, and the idea of joining them together to form a huge surface area to work on gives you ideas and motivates you to make something that's totally different, because you would be looking at the edges and grain lines of the fish in order to make your design, and at the end of the day, these lines create your design line, and enhances your look’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

23.Details of fish patterns, grains.

Nairobi, Kenya - November 27, 2018

24.Details of fish leather on outfits.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

25.SOUNDBITE (English) Jamil Walji, Head Fashion Designer, JW Couture saying:

‘Most of my younger clients seem to be having more of the interest rather than the old ones, because they have come to know, realize and have a better knowledge and understanding about sustainable fashion, and how to protect the environment because they also believe in what will the children face in the future, and they believe that they have a greater future just as the way they did’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

26.Various of Jamil Walji feeling the texture of different leather products, looking at patterns..

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

27.SOUNDBITE (English) Jamil Walji, Head Fashion Designer, JW Couture saying:

‘I see it expanding because it is something new, to me this is actually the first time i am hearing about this. I never knew it existed, and you know having something new in the market always intrigues people, wanting them to have a piece of it, and i mean by someone having one and one, it duplicates and it can even go international’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

28.Shot of fish leather sandals.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

29.Shots of women in fillet packing area.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

30.SOUNDBITE (English) Ira Kidemu, Managing Director, Victorian Foods saying:

‘Absolutely, the women are very excited. When they come here to work, and whenever we bring around guests, they are usually curious to know what is happening, how come the fish that we eat is the same one that can make clothes and shoes. So everyone is interested to know what’s going on here’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

31.Shots of women packing Nile Perch remnants.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

32.Various of women washing raw Nile Perch skin.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

33.SOUNDBITE (Kiswahili) Roselyn Atieno, Tannery Worker, Victorian Foods saying:

‘First of all we wash the fish skin at the factory. Then we weigh to determine the amount of chemicals required for that weight. We then place the skins in a barrel at the tannery, with the flesh side facing up and the scaly side downwards. Then we pound and leave it for six hours. Then we add more chemicals for the next step and wait for another hour. This hourly process is repeated two more times then we wash them, and add colour, then leave it for six more hours. Lastly, we add one more chemical to toughen the skin, and after one more hour, we wash and dry the skins on a wooden frame. Once they dry, they are ready for shipping’.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

34.Women weighing fish skins.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

35.Various of women workers at tannery loading raw fish skins into barrels for manual processing.

36.Shots of women shaking the barrels.

37.Workers scraping the raw fish skin with sticks.

38.Woman rinsing and hanging processed skin on wooden frame to dry.

39.Workers stacking dry, processed leather on wooden frame.

Kitale, Kenya - November 20, 2018

40.Various details of processed leather on rack.

41.Shot of colored finished leather.

Nairobi, Kenya - November 27, 2018

42.Models walking on to stage at the Blue Fashion Show

43.Various of models on stage, posing.

Nairobi, Kenya - November 27, 2018

44.SOUNDBITE (English) Gabriel Rugalema, FAO Representative in Kenya saying:

( Question: CAN THESE PROJECT BE REPLICATED ACROSS AFRICA?)

‘Yes, for countries that have big water bodies around lake Victoria, or in the Congo basin or even around Lake Chad and other places. Aquaculture particularly has a huge potential because given the modern technology, you don't need big areas. There is an exhibitor here from Jomo Kenyatta University who is rearing fish in a small tank like this, and getting good money out of it. So aquaculture at the moment is the most important industry and is growing as a food production industry, and i think as FAO, we need to replicate these examples that i am citing all over the place, because fish is not only important for money, but good nutritious food. And now we have seen that it's also being turned into fashion. We are going to have a fashion show right now based on fish and fish products’.

Nairobi, Kenya - November 27, 2018

45.Various of models walking downstage.

46.Wide of models and audience.

END

Script STORYLINE:

The world has rallied around the enormous pressures facing our oceans and waters, from plastic pollution to the impacts of climate change. At the same time, there is international recognition that we need to develop our waters in an inclusive and sustainable manner for the benefit of all.

In 2013, FAO launched the Blue Growth Initiative which seeks to balance the sustainable management of aquatic resources with economic and social benefits for local communities. Working with fisheries communities, Blue Growth aims to add value to fish to increase incomes and provide additional employment opportunities within the fisheries sector. Developing Blue Fashion – as part of the UN Global Partnership for Sustainable Fashion – could be one promising advancement for fisheries and fish processing communities.

James Ambani, CEO of Victorian Foods in Kitale, began working with about 300 fishermen in the communities around Lake Turkana, in Kenya’s northernmost region. These fishermen provide Ambani’s factory with Nile perch fish, transported through cold storage to Kitale, where it is fileted, processed and shipped around the country and abroad. Because the fish is fileted, the skin is largely unused, or sold as a low value food product. In order to add value to the locally caught fish and to create alternative employment to the community, Victoria Farms began to produce fish leather, which is then transformed into fish leather and used by the fashion industry.

‘The idea started off with my wife exploring possibilities of making leather, and it sounded like a very crazy idea to me, but it went through phases. We got some little training from a friend who had some slight idea about it, and then from there we tried to process the leather with the little knowledge. Didn't turn out well, but later on we managed to get the right formulas, and my wife also attended some training in Singapore for how to perfect fish leather. So here we are, “James Ambani, CEO-Victorian Foods, the official supplier of Kenyan fish leather for the Blue Fashion show taking place at the Kenya Blue economy Conference in Nairobi, Kenya on 27 November.

‘We have lots of finished products, we have shoes, we have jackets, belts, handbags, purses, the list is quite big. Also, the automobile world is looking at motor vehicle interior finished with fish leather, so it's growing. The demand is growing,’ added Ambani.

‘The Nile Perch is quite interesting because it grows into, you know, big sizes. You get a fish that can grow as big as four feet, upto six feet mature fish, and then it is easier to work with. The leather is quite big, so even the designers have a lot of space, a lot of area, skin area to work with, so that makes it very interesting. The pattern on Nile Perch again is very beautiful, and you can do a variety of finishing with that, so i think it's a very good fish to work with on fish leather, ’ explained Ambani.

Roselyn Atieno, 28, is a tannery worker at Victorian Foods. In the factory, skilled workers filet the fish in a way that best preserves the fish skin. The skin is then washed and drained before going through various stages – liming, fleshing, de-liming, bating, degreasing and pickling. Afterwards, the tanning process begins to convert the fish skin into fish leather. Next comes dyeing and finishing (crust and polished-glossy).

‘First of all we wash the fish skin at the factory. Then we weigh to determine the amount of chemicals required for that weight. We then place the skins in a barrel at the tannery, with the flesh side facing up and the scaly side downwards. Then we pound and leave it for six hours. Then we add more chemicals for the next step and wait for another hour. This hourly process is repeated two more times then we wash them, and add colour, then leave it for six more hours. Lastly, we add one more chemical to toughen the skin, and after one more hour, we wash and dry the skins on a wooden frame. Once they dry, they are ready for shipping, ’ explained Roselyn Atieno, Tannery Worker, Victorian Foods.

There are various advantages to the use of Nile perch leather. Due to its relatively large size, the fish skins have wider surface areas compared to most fish skins. The alignment of the perch leather (criss-crossed instead of parallel) means that the resulting leather is the second strongest type of leather. Fish leather clothing and accessories are unique and extremely durable, while also being a far lighter material than cow leather.

Kenyan designer Jamil Walji, Head Fashion Designer at JW Couture, accepted a challenge to create designs made with fish leather produced at Victorian Foods for a Blue Fashion show held at Nairobi’s Blue Economy Conference.

Walji spoke about his experience working with fish leather: ‘I was inspired actually to create garments with it, infuse our local fabric, the leso, together with the fish skin and the European materials. I wanted to bring out a combination that has never been done before, to bring out a totally new image and a new look to how we look at leather products’.

The fish leather is of interest to designers in Kenya and abroad. According to Ira Kidemu of Victorian Foods, the goal is to expand production and to ensure that 60% of those working on creating fish leather for Victorian Foods will be comprised of local women and youth.

‘Absolutely, the women are very excited. When they come here to work, and whenever we bring around guests, they are usually curious to know what is happening, how come the fish that we eat is the same one that can make clothes and shoes. So everyone is interested to know what’s going on here,’ said Ira Kidemu, Managing Director, Victorian Foods.

ENDS

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