Adidas vegan sandals

© Adidas

This Week in Vegan Shoes: Adidas “Plant and Grow” Sandals & Recycled Aluminum Foil Sneakers

This week sees two new interesting vegan shoe launches, both from German companies: sportswear producer Adidas and high-end sneaker brand nat-2. Adidas “Plant and Grow” sandals Adidas has launched its new EQT 93 “Plant and Grow” sandals, made from fully vegan materials including rubber and textile. Said to be inspired by “guerrilla gardening” (cultivating plants in public places that are not being cared for), the sandals have speckled soles that mimic soil. The Plant and Grow shoes are based on Adidas’ classic EQT 93 silhouette, but feature earthy colors such as Green Oxide, Brown, and Easy Yellow. They are said to “put comfort in every step”. Adidas has previously launched shoes made with mushroom leather, along with vegan football boots co-designed by Stella McCartney. In …

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Exotic snake skin

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ProjectEx Opens $1M Pre-Seed Round to Revolutionize Luxury Market With Cultivated Exotic Leather

ProjectEx, a Singapore-based cultivated leather startup, has announced a $1 million pre-seed fundraising round to revolutionize the luxury market with sustainable and cruelty-free exotic cultivated leather.  ProjectEx was launched by two industry experts, biomedical engineer Dr. Viknish Krishnan-Kutty, CEO of Cellivate Technologies, and Adrian Fürstenburg, an award-winning South African Designer.  Founded in 2019 as a spin-off from the National University of Singapore, Cellivate Technologies is a deep-tech startup with a proprietary platform technology developing FBS-free media for cultivated meat companies. ProjectEx will combine its biotechnology and synthetic biology expertise to grow its alternative skin.  An urgent need “As a designer who works with leather, I know firsthand the impact that the industry has on the environment and animal welfare,” said Adrian Fürstenburg. “Sustainability is not …

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@ GOLDWIN INC.

GOLDWIN and Spiber Present Fashion Collection Made of Brewed Protein Fiber

GOLDWIN INC. announces the launch of its Fall/Winter 2023 collection, featuring five brands simultaneously using the innovative structural protein material Brewed Protein fiber, developed in partnership with Spiber Corporation since 2015. “Through this joint development, we will rethink the relationship between nature and man and consider a completely new way of using materials” After many years of joint development, five brands — The North Face, Goldwin, nanamica, The North Face Purple Label, and Woolrich — have now launched products with Brewed Protein™ fiber, a new next-generation material from Japan, and will be available worldwide in the fall. With the start of mass production of Brewed Protein polymer at Spiber’s Thai plant in early 2022 – eight years after Goldwin and Spiber began their joint development …

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Plant-based sequins

Image courtesy of Stella McCartney.

Stella McCartney Debuts “First Ever” Garment Made With Plant-Based Sequins

Stella McCartney has developed what is claimed to be the first ever garment made from plastic-free, plant-based sequins. The sleeveless Biosequin® jumpsuit has made its debut on the cover of American Vogue, modelled by Cara Delevigne. It is not yet commercially available, but is said to showcase the potential benefits of the material. Developed by a company called Radiant Matter, which specialises in “colour and material solutions for the circular economy”, Biosequins are made from plant-derived cellulose. They are fully biodegradable and contain no plastic, metals, minerals, or synthetic pigments.  According to Stella McCartney, conventional sequins are made from synthetic materials such as PVC or polyester film, which are harmful to the environment and contain chemicals that could have a negative impact on human health. …

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Ford Mustang Mach-E

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Top 25 Vegan-Friendly Car Manufacturers in 2023

Car dealership Dick Lovett recently compiled an updated review, correct of January 2023, demonstrating which global car manufacturers currently offer the highest number of vegan-friendly cars, analysing data from PETA and car manufacturers worldwide. Aside from the manufacturers mentioned in this particular study, vegconomist has also recently reported on notable developments coming from Liux for its electric vehicle; Ultrafabrics’ new partnership with India’s Tata Motors; and last September’s news that all BMW and MINI cars will have fully vegan interiors from 2023. Additionally, it was reported last May by The Vegan Society that 75% of UK consumers want to see the removal of animal products from vehicles and that 70% are actively looking at purchasing an animal-free vehicle.  The Dick Lovett study is based on …

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Stony Creek Colors

© Stony Creek Colors

Stony Creek Colors Raises $4.8M for Plant-Based Indigo Denim Dye

Stony Creek Colors, a US company claiming to be the only industrial-scale manufacturer of 100% bio-based indigo globally, has raised $4.8 million in funding. The Series B2 round was led by Lewis & Clark AgriFood and Levi Strauss & Co, longstanding partners of Stony Creek. The dye manufacturer plans to use the funding to further develop its farming infrastructure and dye extraction process, following the company’s $9 million Series B raise last year.  Certified by the USDA BioPreferred Program, Stony Creek has a vertically integrated model allowing for full traceability. The company’s proprietary indigo varieties are grown across 500 acres of land in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Florida, in a process that fixes nitrogen and absorbs carbon. The indigo can also be used as part of …

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Overstock Bans Cashmere Products, Receiving PETA Compassionate Business Award

Overstock.com, a US based retailer of furniture and home furnishings retailer, has been awarded PETA‘s Compassionate Business Award following its recent ban on products made from cashmere. The company previously banned products with exotic skins and other furs, including badger hair, mohair, angora, and alpaca. Working together with PETA, Overstock has already identified and removed from its website several products made of cashmere and says it is committed to putting measures in place to ensure such products are no longer offered on its e-commerce site by the end of this year. “Thanks to Overstock’s kind decision, fewer cashmere goats will be harmed for throw blankets,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA is recognizing this conscientious company for being a leader in animal-free commerce …

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vegan leather cars in a porsche

© Porsche

Rising Trend Towards Vegan Friendly Cars

“There is not a completely vegan car on the market,” the Vegan Society says in its Vegan Vehicles: The Future of Cars Report 2022. However, car manufacturers have been offering non-leather interiors for a while, with many pledging to use alternative materials in their new and existing models in coming years.  Animal leather has traditionally been the standard option for premium car seats and interiors, but current luxury trends do not involve the slaughter of animals. Demand for alternative materials is making the automobile industry incorporate more vegan options for its models, adding to the rise in the global synthetic leather market which is on track to reach $67.2 billion by 2030, according to Straits Research. Growing trend towards animal-free interiors In 2020, PETA published its …

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Alife & Kickin male female coats

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This Winter Streetwear Collection Features Vegan Puffa Coats With Faux Down

German streetwear label Alife & Kickin announces its autumn/winter collection featuring vegan puffa coats with fake down and recycled materials, with a focus on “100% vegan fashion – from the label to the zipper.”   According to the brand, the vegan replacement for animal down is imitated from polyester and is officially called Pearl Padding. Animal-derived materials such as wool, leather, fur and silk are also replaced by sustainable, certified raw materials such as organic cotton, Lyocell and recycled nylon and polyester.   Speaking to vegconomist today, Head of Sales Vito Catalano, explains: “Sustainability is what makes the small but huge difference. Because in a world where commerce and price are above all else, we must not forget sustainability. We consistently implement this credo in …

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spiber spider silk

Brewed Protein silk© spiber.jp

ADM and Spiber Sign New Agreement to Support Regenerative Farming of Brewed Protein in Iowa

Agribusiness leader ADM and biotech company Spiber announce a new joint agreement to support the adoption of regenerative farming practices for Spiber’s Brewed Protein™. Through the agreement, the companies will work with corn farmers in Iowa to implement sustainable farming practices for the production of Spiber’s biomaterials.  Made from corn-based dextrose, Brewed Protein is a next-generation polymer that replaces petroleum-derived materials in a variety of applications, ranging from clothing to car seats. ADM and Spiber first partnered in 2020 to build a manufacturing facility in Clinton, IA to convert corn dextrose into Brewed Protein using ADM’s massive microbial fermentation capabilities.   Now, both companies are working to expand the environmental impact of Brewed Protein by encouraging Iowa farmers to adopt regenerative farming practices such as the …

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Phil and Maria of Simplifyber

Image credit: Mofield_John © Simplifyber

Simplifyber: “We are Fundamentally Changing the Entire Process of Making Shoes and Clothes”

Simplifyber does not create normal apparel. The clothes and shoes made by this New York brand are not only 3d printed and “created in a lab, not in a factory”, but are also 100% biodegradable. It’s a fascinating area of innovation, bearing in mind that the fashion industry is the third most polluting industry, responsible for more CO2 emissions than the shipping and the aviation industry combined, and one which brought Simplifibyer an initial swell of interest from investors to the tune of multiple millions this summer. We were excited for the opportunity to speak with CEO Maria Intscher-Owrang, whose 20+ year career as a fashion designer and director includes periods at leading fashion houses, including Vera Wang, Calvin Klein, and Alexander McQueen. What is …

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New York’s Gomorrah Launches Fully Compostable Menswear Line

Gomorrah, a New York-based menswear brand creating luxury plant-based and compostable clothes, recently announced a 100% compostable menswear line, to help combat the myriad problems caused by fast fashion and the microplastics caused by unsustainable fabrics. Founded in 2020, Gomorrah is a self-funded brand, a member of 1% for the Planet and partner of One Tree Planted, sending a percentage of every unit sold to US reforestation efforts. The brand encourages the customer to compost garments after several years of wear, saying that the “idea is to live in your clothes, repair them, and grow in them, not toss them aside for the next trend.” The collection debuts with two products – the fully compostable T-shirt which is already available for purchase on the website, …

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Former Hyundai Spin-off Mycel Raises $10M For Mycelium Biomaterials

South Korean fungi biomaterials startup Mycel, originally a spin-off of the Hyundai Motor Group, recently announced the completion of its $10 million pre-Series A funding round to commercialise its mycelium-based leather alternative in 2023. Mycel is utilising mycelium to create leather alternatives that may be used in automobile seats, high-end cosmetics, and fashion items like shoes, garments, and bags. The company’s website states its “mission is to stimulate the diverse imaginations of our customers through our technology, and together with our customers, make a huge move towards the transition to a sustainable renewable system,” and says it is “developing and testing new aesthetic designs/plans to diversify our portfolio of commercializable materials and products”. Hyundai Motor Group Since 2000, HMG has operated an internal venture system …

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Vegan Car Interiors of the Future: Ultrafabrics Unveils New Tata Motors Concept

Ultrafabrics has unveiled a new partnership with India’s Tata Motors showcasing a futuristic vegan interior concept car. The partnership with Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM), the electric vehicle subsidiary of global automobile manufacturing company Tata Motors is the latest collection from the animal-free, high-performance fabric specialist. Inspired by the colors and crafts of Tata Motors’ Indian heritage, Ultrafabrics states the end result is a warm and inviting interior for TPEM’s new electric vehicle, the AVINYA Concept. It features Ultrafabrics’ Fusion Shimmer and Volar Bio vegan materials crafted in its Japanese mill using the proprietary production process. Spanning many industries, the brand’s client list includes Jaguar Land Rover, Herman Miller, Winnebago, Fitbit, Virgin Galactic, and Movado. TPEM and Tata Motors are under the Tata Group umbrella, …

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Gomorrah Weekender Compostable Shirt

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Gomorrah Introduces “World’s First” Compostable, Plant-Based Luxury Menswear Shirts

In an industry still dominated by fast fashion and disposable culture, Gomorrah is one menswear brand on a mission to create compostable, plant-based luxury clothing. In the US alone, 22 billion pounds of clothing are thrown away in landfills every year, often polluting the environment with toxic dyes and plastic-derived fibers that can take centuries to break down. In response to this ongoing crisis, Gomorrah has embraced sustainability by creating the Compostable Collection, the world’s first 100% compostable and vegan-friendly shirts in luxury menswear.  Elegance meets eco-friendly The soon-to-be-launched collection features premium button-down shirts made with fully organic cotton, non-toxic dyes, and zero-waste buttons. Most importantly, the brand states, the shirts are designed with the garment’s entire life cycle in mind, and made only with …

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