Being one of the most popular clothing brands in the sports industry, you can imagine that Adidas produces a great number of clothing items and sports equipment. Most of this sportswear, however, involves a lot of plastic as part of its production material which, after use, usually ends up in landfills.
To ensure that this is no longer the case, last year, Adidas pledged to only use recycled plastics for its shoes and clothing by 2024. Now, the sports apparel giant has revealed a detailed roadmap towards achieving that goal and has also introduced Primeblue and Primegreen — two new fabrics that use 100 percent recycled polyester.
Its goal for 2020 is to make sure that 50 percent of the polyester it uses for products comes from recycled sources. Next year, it also plans to work with sports partners in the US to transition to more sustainable uniforms, so expect to see more sponsored teams rocking clothes that were partly made from recycled materials.
According to the company, its new materials Primeblue and Primegreen will help it ditch non-recycled plastics completely within the timeframe it set for itself. Primeblue contains a fabric made from plastic waste collected from beaches and the ocean, while Primegreen will use polyester derived from recycled water bottles.
Adidas has two more strategies in its bid to stop contributing to plastic wastes. Its Circular Loop strategy focuses on products that were “made to be remade,” such as its fully recyclable Futurecraft Loop running shoes. Finally, its Bionic Loop strategy is all about the company’s ambition to create products that can be reused and remade before they’re returned to nature.