Adidas has a tumultuous past with environmental groups. The group Greenpeace International has continuously confronted Adidas about their contribution to toxic waste, ultimately aiding Adidas in signing a commitment to have zero discharge of hazardous chemicals by 2020. Greenpeace International then scolded Adidas as they faltered in 2013, loading swimwear with hazardous PFC.
As of 2014, Adidas finally looks to be serious about their commitment to being environmentally friendly, and they have partnered up with Parley for the Oceans in order to do their part to help save the environment, more specifically the oceans.
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Adidas has unveiled a new shoe made in the style of their other Primeknit shoes, which uses recycled ocean plastic for the upper portion of the shoe. The shoe is knitted, so it is made with zero waste, compared to the cutting process required for most other shoes.
The majority of the shoes will be made out of illegal fishing nets and beach trash, and the sample shoe was made out of an illegal deep-sea gillnet that Sea Shepherd Sea Conservation Society claimed from a poaching vessel off of the coast of West Africa.
Adidas’ partner for the project, Parley is an organization that attempts to gather great thinkers of many different backgrounds and gives them a space in which to talk and solve the problem of ocean pollution.
The organization was founded by artist Cyrill Gutsch, and contains a number of people from many different professions who are working towards a creative solution. In an interview with Adele Peters of Co.Exist, Gutsch explained one of the organization’s ultimate goals is to develop a plastic alternative that would harmlessly dissolve into nature. They have a chemist working on that project at the moment, but Gutsh said that they are very far away from completing it.
Adidas is not the first company to turn recycled ocean plastic into clothing—clothing company G-Star Raw also worked with Parley to include the material in their denim. Musician and entrepreneur Pharrell Williams was a creative director on the clothing line.
Eric Liedtke, Adidas Group executive board member of global brands stated that Adidas would like to continue to use recycled ocean plastic for many of their other products.
“We don’t have to limit ourselves. We can put this in T-shirts, we can put this in shorts, we can put this in all kinds of stuff,” Liedtke said.