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Chewing gum sneakers are now a thing in Amsterdam
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The Gumshoe sneaker has a sole made from a recyclable compound called Gum-Tec, which includes 20 percent chewing gum. (Shutterstock/File)
U
sed chewing gum scraped from the streets of Amsterdam has become the latest ingredient in the manufacture of environmentally friendly sneakers.
In a bid to reduce waste and litter, the Dutch capital's marketing organization Iamsterdam, designer Explicit Wear and sustainability company Gumdrop have joined forces to design a shoe using recycled gum, as reported by The Verge.
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Named Gumshoe, the sneakers have soles produced by Gumdrop that are made of a recyclable compound called Gum-Tec, 20 percent of which is gum.
"We discovered gum is made from synthetic rubber, and by breaking down these properties, we were able to create a new type of rubber," Anna Bullus, managing director and designer at Gumdrop said, as quoted by The Verge.
Read also: Cleaning and caring tips for white sneakers
Gum-Tec compounds are formed as granules, which are subsequently molded into the sole of the shoe. The sneaker bottoms also feature a map of Amsterdam.
The city spends millions of dollars every year to clean up approximately 3.3 million pounds of gum that end up on pavements, according to the project. For every four pairs of shoes, the project would use around 2.2 pounds (1kg) of gum.
"We started looking for a way to make people aware of this problem [...]. That's when the idea [came up] to create a product people actually want from something no one cares about," Jonathan Van Loon, a spokesperson for the collaboration, said in an e-mail to The Verge. Van Loon said the compound had the strength or normal rubber and smelled of gum.
According to its creators, the Gumshoe is the world's first sneaker made from gum. While its soles are made of rubber, the rest of the shoe is made from leather.
The shoes are set to be available in June for 190 euros (US$232). (liz/wng)
