Puma and First Mile team up in the name of sustainability

Puma has joined forces with the recycling organization First Mile to launch a sustainable sportswear collection.

The duo have unveiled 'Puma X First Mile,' an activewear series spanning shoes and apparel made from recycled plastic. The pieces are fabricated using recycled yarn from plastic bottles collected via First Mile's people-focused network in Taiwan, Honduras, and Haiti.

"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, in a statement.

He added: "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."

First Mile supports micro-economies by creating sustainable jobs and reducing pollution. The collected bottles are cleaned and shredded, before being transformed into yarn that is then used to make "products with purpose."

"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."