Adidas launches biodegradable running shoes made of spider silk

Sports apparel and footwear giant adidas has unveiled recently a pair of biodegradable running shoes that users can dissolve in the kitchen sink once worn out. And the process is 100 percent natural.

Introduced at the Biofabricate Conference held in New York last November, the sneakers are called the adidas Futurecraft Biofabric and feature open-knit uppers made of Biosteel, a synthetic spider silk from Germany-based biotechnology company AMSilk. The material is created by fermenting genetically modified bacteria that is then spun into thread. The yarn gives the shoes a golden sheen. AMSilk claims that Biosteel is the strongest artificial spider silk produced to date.

Futurcraft Biofabric uses adidas' trademark Boost soles and is 15 percent lighter than sneakers made of traditional polymers. The brand says users can get two good years of high-impact wear from the shoes.

And when they are finally worn out, owners can dissolve their kicks at home using an enzyme solution called proteinase, also from AMSilk. The solution can thoroughly breakdown the protein-based uppers in 36 hours, leaving only the soles.

Currently, only prototypes are available but adidas plans to release the shoes for retail next year.

This is the company’s second venture on environment-friendly shoes after launching the adidas X Parley last June. The footwear feature uppers made of recycled ocean plastic.

For more information about the Futurecraft Biofabric, watch the video below.