(Decanter) - An Italian entrepreneur plans to launch a leather made from wine extracts in Milan later this year.

Think luxury goods. Think leather. Think wine. Think wine leather – a simulated leather made from grape skin and seed fibres, currently provided by organic Italian winemakers.

The new material, in the form of prototype garments, bags and other fashion accessories, will have its official launch this October in Milan.

It could potentially reduce pressure on a range of animals and reptiles, including cows, donkeys, ostriches, dogs, alligators and crocodiles, to provide their own pelts.

Creator, Milan-based architect Gianpiero Tessitore, says the product is aimed at consumers who prefer to spend money on green and cruelty-free alternatives to animal and oil-based synthetic leathers.