Joining the front line in the fight against plastic pollution, PUMA has collaborated with First Mile to launch a sportswear collection consisting of shoes and apparel made from recycled yarn that’s manufactured from plastic bottles collected in the First Mile network. And they’ve pulled in their top footballing talent from both the men’s and women’s game to show it off.
Plastic pollution is a major problem facing the world, and thankfully the biggest sports brands are doing their bit to tackle the issue, and PUMA’s new collaboration with First Mile is part of the German company’s commitment to reduce its environmental impact and live up to its code of being “Forever Better”. To support the campaign, PUMA have called upon some of the best talent in world football, including Sergio Aguero, Ada Hegerberg, Antoine Griezmann, Nikita Parris, Marco Reus, and Luis Suarez.
The First Mile is a people-focused network that strengthens micro-economies in Taiwan, Honduras, and Haiti by collecting plastic bottles to create sustainable jobs and reduce pollution. The bottles are then sorted, cleaned, shredded, and turned into yarn, which is later used to create products with purpose that truly empower from the first mile forward.
“Even though one of the key benefits of this partnership is social impact, the PUMA and First Mile program has diverted over 40 tonnes of plastic waste from landfills and oceans, just for the products made for 2020. This roughly translates into 1,980,286 plastic bottles being reused,” said Stefan Seidel, Head of Corporate Sustainability for PUMA. “The pieces from this co-branded training collection range from shoes, tees, shorts, pants and jackets—all the apparel is made of at least 83% to even 100% from the more sustainable yarn sourced from First Mile.”
“We hope that whoever buys this collection feels good about this purchase, not just in terms of choosing something that uses sustainable material, but knowing that those entrepreneurs in the First Mile are being connected to this product because it’s their material going into it,” said Kelsey Halling, Head of Partnerships at First Mile. “The more we can connect that last mile with the first mile, the easier this sustainable movement will be able to continue.”
Shop the PUMA x First Mile collection at prodirectsoccer.com
