A process for leather production from a raw animal hide includes the steps of pre-soaking, soaking, unhairing and liming, re-liming, deliming and bating, pickling and tanning, degreasing, re-tanning, neutralizing, dyeing and fatliquoring, and washing the processed hide. Waste liquid is collected from at least one of the foregoing steps is recycled to at least one of the foregoing steps. The collected waste liquid can be recycled to the same step, to a different step, or to two of more steps in the process.