Friday 31st March 2017
Adidas has joined environmental group Parley for the Oceans to transform ocean plastic pollution into recycled swimwear.
Last year the sportswear giant unveiled a new range of trainers made from ocean plastics, and have now launched a swimwear range to help tackle one of the biggest environmental problems on the planet.
As part of the partnership, Adidas Swim has released a new video showing the extent of the problem, which affects and kills millions of birds, turtles, fish and other species every year.
Recent studies indicate that at least 40 million pounds of plastic has accumulated and is floating in the North Pacific Ocean alone.
Picture taken by Rich Carey/Shutterstock
Parley for the Oceans is an organisation aiming to reduce this, that brings together creators, thinkers and leaders to raise awareness about the current state of our oceans and to help protect and conserve them.
The global Parley network of cleanup organizations collect huge volumes of plastic debris washed up on beaches and shorelines, and collaborate with companies such as Adidas on projects where the plastic waste can be utilized.
The ocean plastic collected by Parley is converted into a technical yarn fibre named Econyl, which offers the same properties as the regular nylon used to make swimwear.
Adidas design director Roger Hahn explains that all types of plastic can be recycled into swimsuits, and that it is possible to make over 1,000 swimsuits from the plastic from a large fishing net.
The swimwear is the latest project from the Adidas x Parley collaboration, the sportswear brand first launched the Adidas Parley trainers, and has gone on to create the Real Madrid and Bayern Munich Parley football kits from ocean plastics.
