HERZOGENAURACH – Sportswear giant Adidas says it plans to embark on a beta testing phase of its new mono-material, recyclable performance footwear, UltraBoost DNA Loop, as it looks to assess the role of consumers in a closed loop manufacturing system.
The footwear, incepted in April of last year, is made entirely from recycled TPU and uses no glue, as to provide idyllic circumstances for the product to be recycled and upcycled into new shoes.
Key to achieving the illusive circular economy though is consumers engaging with the returns process. “To make this a success we need to understand the human element – how people can be encouraged to return the shoes to be recycled – because while we control the creation, we can only influence what happens when the shoes leave us. We can’t get there alone,” said James Carnes, VP of brand strategy at the sportswear firm.
