Plastic is polluting our oceans and damaging wildlife. By 2050, there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans. Many other marine animals and species are also dying. Animals become entangled with the plastic or consume it confusing it with food. Plastic also contains harmful chemicals that leak into the ocean and affect our health. The issue has become so severe that governments and corporations have been implementing changes to do their part in no longer contributing so much to plastic pollution.

Canada and Panama have both announced plans to ban certain single-use plastic products. Even big companies whose products rely on plastic packaging are moving in more environmental directions. Both Pepsi and Coca-Cola ditched the Plastic Association after PepsiCo announced the decision to can their water. Dasani, another seller of bottled water, announced that they’d also be switching to aluminum, plant-derived materials, and vending machines to refill reusable bottles.

Sportswear and sneaker company, Adidas, are also trying to do their part. A few years ago they announced the decision to make sneakers out of plastic ocean waste in partnership with Parley for the Oceans. In 2019 alone, they aim to make 11 million pairs of shoes with recycled ocean plastic. That’s more than two times the amount they made in 2018. For a company that makes over 400 million shoes a year, this is progress.

If every year, they continue to increase the amount of shoes made with recycled plastic ocean waste, they can prevent even more plastic from reaching the ocean. According to Business Insider, their partnership with Parley “has prevented 2,810 tons of plastic from reaching the oceans.”

The shoes are made with at least 75 percent trash from the ocean, and they also use recycled polyester which uses fewer chemicals and also helps prevent plastic pollution. In even more exciting news, Adidas is creating an entirely recyclable shoe called the Futurecraft Loop. It is made to be broken down and remade into a new pair of shoes. It will be released in 2021.

Also read: https://muthafm.com/novesta-release-their-vegan-trail-marathons-for-aw19/