Ecoalf x Michelin launch loafers made from waste rubber and plastic bottles

B-Corp fashion brand Ecoalf has teamed up with multinational tire and footwear soles manufacturer Michelin for a recycled loafer collection.

The two companies worked together to develop a shoe sole made from rubber that would otherwise be wasted in the production of Soles by Michelin.

The footwear’s knitted fabric upper is then made from a mix of 30 percent polyester and 70 percent ‘Ocean Yarn’, a material developed by Ecoalf using plastic bottles collected from the bottom of the ocean as part of the company’s Upcycling the Oceans project.

Each pair of the unisex loafers contain five bottles, with Ecoalf estimating the entire unit of shoes created will reduce CO2 equivalent emissions by 14,773 tonnes and save 384,188 litres of water when compared to the same number of traditional, non-recycled loafers.

The loafers, which cost 99.90 euros, also come in Ecoalf’s newly-developed packaging made from 100 percent recycled cardboard with a 100 percent recycled polyester strap.

Image: Ecoalf