The Adidas Futurecraft Loop shoe can be fully recycled and made into another pair of running shoes.

The future is here: raw materials in the Adidas Futurecraft Loop are 100% recyclable and can be remade into new running shoes.

The Futurecraft Loop project tackles the problem of plastic waste head-on. The raw materials in the shoe can be repurposed again and again – and not just into a water bottle or a tote bag, but into another pair of high-performance running shoes.

How it works  

According to Adidas, sports footwear typically include complex material mixes and component gluing – resulting in a shoe which can only be downcycled. After close to a decade of research and development alongside leading material development, manufacturing and recycling partners across Asia, Europe and North America, Adidas has found a way to change the process by using one material type and no glue.

Each component in the Futurecraft Loop is made from 100% reusable TPU – it’s spun to yarn, knitted, molded and clean-fused to a Boost midsole using an Adidas technology called “SPEEDFACTORY”.

Once the shoes come to the end of their first life and are returned to Adidas, they are washed, ground to pellets and melted into material for components for a new pair of shoes, with zero waste and nothing thrown away. Each generation is designed to meet the Adidas sports performance standard without compromise.

Zero waste: once the Adidas Futurecraft Loop comes to the end of its first life, return the shoes to Adidas, where they’ll be washed, ground to pellets, and remolded into new 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 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.”

“Futurecraft Loop is our first running shoe that is made to be remade. It is a statement of our intent to take responsibility for the entire life of our product; proof that we can build high-performance running shoes that you don’t have to throw away.” 

“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,” said Eric Liedtke, Executive Board Member at Adidas, responsible for Global Brands.

The first step

The first-gen Futurecraft Loop shoe will be rolled out as part of a beta program with 200 leading Adidas Creators from across the world’s major cities. Adidas will challenge them to run, return the shoes and share feedback on their experience, ahead of the second-gen drop.

The insights will be used to shape the roadmap for the wider release targeted for Spring Summer 2021.

We can’t help but wonder how much a pair of the Futurecraft Loop will cost, but if the project comes to fruition, paying more for a pair of shoes that go a long, long way is well worth it.

What are your thoughts on the Adidas Futurecraft Loop? Leave a comment below. 

Source: Adidas Futurecraft

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