Adidas's Fully Recyclable Trainers Have A Never-Ending Lifespan

Entirely recyclable footwear would have been unimaginable a few years ago. But Adidas has achieved the first fully recyclable trainer that has a never-ending lifespan for spring 2021.

The Futurecraft Loop model is made from 100 per cent recyclable material. Working with Parley for the Oceans (an organisation that addresses threats to the world’s seas), the two companies have created a trainer made from yarns and filaments from reclaimed marine plastic waste. “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, in a statement. “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 excess 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.” Unlike other Adidas trainers, which are usually made from 12 different materials – such as glue, polyester, rubber, synthetic fibres and foam – this new model uses just one (a form of thermoplastic polyurethane).

In the newly launched campaign, Willow Smith explains the cyclical process which the brand shared on Instagram. In short: a pair of trainers can be returned to the brand, broken down and reused to create another pair.