British actress and singer Jane Birkin asked luxury manufacturer Hermes to remove her name from its crocodile-skin handbag after learning of the "cruel" methods used to make the iconic accessory. She announced that she had signed the "Mercy For Animals" petition started by actor Joaquin Phoenix in protest against the "millions of reptiles slaughtered each year and turned into shoes, handbags, belts and other accessories".

"Having been alerted to the cruel practices reserved for crocodiles during their slaughter to make Hermes handbags carrying my name, I have asked Hermes to debaptise the Birkin Croco until better practices in line with international norms can be put in place," the 68-year-old said in a statement.

Status symbol

Costing tens of thousands of euros, the Birkin bag has become a symbol of wealth and is much-loved by celebrities, but the version made out of crocodile skin has attracted the ire of animal rights activists.

The bag had been designed for Birkin in 1984, after a chance meeting of the singer and the then president of Hermes, Jean-Louis Dumas. A young mother at the time, she had complained she could not find a bag that was both elegant and practical.

Hermes meanwhile said the crocodile skins it sourced from a Texas farm in the video were not used for Birkin bags and stressed that it did not own that farm. The luxury brand also said that an investigation was being conducted into the farm's practices and added that "any breach of rules will be rectified and sanctioned."

The crocodile Birkin and the Kelly bag, named after actress Grace Kelly, are among the most sought-after luxury goods in the world - even though the starting retail price is more than 20,000 euros ($22,096) - partly because shops routinely run out of them.

ss/lw(Reuters, AFP)