When you think about cleaner oceans, does聽 come to mind? It should. For 20 years, the outdoor and sportswear manufacturer has quietly implemented a slew of very impressive company-wide initiatives to become a more sustainable brand. But it鈥檚 the company鈥檚 relationship with 鈥攁 global network of creators, thinkers, and leaders from a variety of industries who have pulled together to collaborate on projects to protect the world鈥檚 oceans鈥攖hat might have the most lasting effect.
In 2015, adidas partnered with Parley to remove plastic waste from the world鈥檚 beaches and shorelines and use that plastic in the manufacturing of its shoes and clothing. To do that, Parley works with partner organizations in the coastal areas in the Maldives to collect plastic from beaches and coastal areas.聽The plastic collected is sent聽to a processing facility in Taiwan where it’s turned into yarn.
Globally, it鈥檚 estimated that at least five trillion pieces of plastic, weighing over 250,000 tons in total, are now floating in the world鈥檚 oceans. Much of that waste consists of large pieces of plastic and plastic fishing nets, which according to one study entangle between 57,000 and 135,000 whales each year.
In 2018 alone, that yarn was spun into in adidas鈥檚 outdoor-sports-focused Terrex line聽including shoes, tops, and shorts for men and women. The product has proven to be immensely popular: one million pairs of Parley shoes were sold in 2017, five million will be sold by the end of this year, and in 2019 the company expects to sell 11 million pairs of shoes made with Parley Ocean Plastic. 鈥淓ach pair of Parley shoes prevents approximately 11 plastic bottles from ending up in the world鈥檚 oceans,鈥 says Christian Zwinger, design director for adidas鈥檚 Terrex line of footwear.
Each pair of Parley shoes prevents approximately 11 plastic bottles from ending up in the world鈥檚 oceans
According to Zwinger, the reason the adidas x Parley shoes and apparel have caught on is threefold. Today鈥檚 consumers are looking to support brands that are actively doing their part to reduce their impact on the planet, but that鈥檚 just the start. The product also looks great, and, perhaps most important, using recycled plastic hasn’t hurt the integrity of the products. 鈥淚t鈥檚 performing just as well as the normal materials,鈥 he says. 鈥淎nd it looks better than the products we made before.鈥 Case in point: this year鈥檚 new .聽Its socklike, foot-hugging mesh upper is made from Parley Ocean Plastic鈩 yarn, while a lugged outsole, made from Continental rubber, provides confident grip, making it the perfect companion for long trail runs.
To help bolster the program, in June adidas kicked off the Parley Run for the Oceans initiative, which raised money for the Parley Ocean School, an initiative that educates and empowers a new class of ambassadors for the movement. In just the first few days, runners around the world ran over 500,000 miles. By the end of the month, they鈥檇 logged more than seven million miles, raising $1 million. The initative not only helped raise money toward the cause, but help spread awareness for protecting our oceans鈥攕omething adidas plans to continue to do going forward. 鈥淭he brand is looking toward using no virgin plastic by the year 2024,鈥 says Zwinger. 鈥淩ecycled material will be the future.”
adidas is working with 聽to keep plastic from entering our oceans and transform it into high-performance sportswear. Spinning the problem into a solution. The threat into a thread. Learn more at聽.聽 | Hero image:聽Kristine Marie Berg