Vegetable-tanned leather, unlike chromium-tanned leather, uses no harsh chemicals. Mimosa powder, derived from tree bark from Africa, gives the rich finish of the leather used on these belts. The devoted process takes six weeks from rawhide to finished leather ready to be cut and sewn into a Hanks Belt. The final step is hand burnishing every hide. Though it is a labor-intensive process it results in a unique, extremely fine finish.