The Latest Generation Of Sneakers

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

They are not edible, but almost. Reebok has launched on the market this week some slippers made from cotton and corn that are biodegradable. That is to say, once they have fulfilled their function and end up in the garbage, these sneakers decompose completely, like a banana peel.

"Most shoes are made from petroleum-based plastics that remain in landfills for hundreds of years," explained Bill McInnis, vice president of the Reebok Future innovation team, in a company post on social media.

"When you recycle plastic, it's still plastic, you don't eliminate the problem," he added on the CBS newscast. "The key is how to remove rubber and plastic from the manufacturing process and replace it with materials that grow in nature, like corn."

The sole of the sneakers is made with corn and castor oil, while the upper is made of 100 percent organic cotton. Reebok's next goal, according to McKinni, is to create sneakers that can completely decompose in six months.

At the moment NPC UK Cotton + Corn, the first model that went on sale 7 days ago, is already out of stock.

The shoe company thus joins the trend of the textile sector towards more sustainable fashion and, as the brand says, "more humane", joining the initiatives of Adidas, which has shoes made from plastics found in the oceans, and Nike sells others made from recycled leather.