Saucony shoots for sustainable future with new apparel line

Saucony recently announced that the company will focus on sustainability as it moves forward, and almost all of its new products will be made with renewable materials. The company is even developing its first biodegradable shoe, which is “one small step toward reducing our footprint for good.” Hundreds of millions of pairs of shoes are produced every year, and hundreds of millions more are tossed in the trash and end up in landfills. With more sustainable practices and materials used, companies can significantly lower the amount of waste humans produce on a yearly basis.

We aren’t perfect but we’re making progress. The environment is important to us so that’s why we’ve committed to creating a sustainable shoe and created an apparel line made from nearly 100% sustainable materials. #EarthDay #RunForGoodhttps://t.co/TYfnVhtCMb pic.twitter.com/29b0WLGub4

— Saucony (@saucony) April 22, 2020

Eco-friendly production

Natural, organic and recycled materials were used to produce Saucony’s new Spring 2020 collection. The company’s “environmentally conscious materials” include recycled polyester, which it produces by melting existing plastic (water bottles, for example) and turning it into a new polyester fibre. Saucony is looking to use as much recycled polyester as possible without sacrificing the comfort and durability of its products.

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Saucony’s eco-friendly materials also include recycled nylon and organic cotton. Even the tags attached to clothing will be made with a mix of recycled post-consumer waste and paper.

Biodegradable shoe

The first-ever biodegradable Saucony shoe was the focus of a Super Bowl ad in February. In the commercial the narrator asks the question, “What if the shoes we threw away actually went away?” That is the goal of the biodegradable shoe, which is still in development: to have a shoe which, when thrown away, won’t just sit in landfill and take decades to decompose.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=30&v=SEwJZjqRZ2o&feature=emb_logo

The first biodegradable shoe will be added to the Saucony Originals line, and it will be made from natural materials and renewable resources while also remaining completely free of plastics, bioplastics and plastic derivatives.

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In addition to creating this eco-friendly shoe, its manufacturing process will use less electricity, and it won’t be built using petroleum-based glues and threads. It’s a shoe that is environmentally friendly from its earliest stages of production until the end of its life.