The Bite Magazine - Summer 2019 - Issue 25

E bite fashion W ith plastic pollution identified as a huge concern for the environment, mankind and sea life over the last few years, a number of brands and companies have taken the initiative to tackle this head-on. To prevent un- necessary waste, sportswear brand adidas has created a 100% recyclable performance running shoe called ‘Futurecraft Loop’. Starting in 2015, they collaborated with Parley for the Oceans to introduce the first performance footwear concept with an upper made entirely of yarns and filaments reclaimed and recy- cled frommarine plastic water and deep-sea gillnets. Fast forward four years, and they plan to produce 11 million pairs of shoes containing recycled ocean plastic from waste found on beaches, remote islands and in coastal commu- nities. In their commitment to use only recycled polyester in every product, the sportswear brand will create products with premiummaterials by Parley, made from up-cycled ma- rine plastic waste, being the first pillar of their sustainability strategy. The good news about this new performance run- ning shoe is that once it is worn, it can be returned to adidas, broken down and reused to create new running shoes. “Taking plastic waste out of the system is the first step, but we can’t stop there,” said Eric Liedtke, Executive Board Member at adidas, responsible for Global Brands. “What happens to your shoes after you’ve worn them out? You throw them away - except there is no away. There are only landfills and incinerators and ultimately an atmosphere choked with ex- cess carbon, or oceans filled with plastic waste. The next step is to end the concept of ‘waste’ entirely. Our dream is that you can keep wearing the same shoes over and over again.”