Salomon, the modern mountain sports lifestyle brand, CARBIOS (Euronext Growth Paris : ALCRB), a pioneer in the development and industrialization of biological technologies to reinvent the life cycle of plastic and textiles, Far Eastern New Century, a global leader in the PET/polyester industry headquartered in Taiwan and serving global brands with the virgin, recycled and bio-PET/polyester products, have joined forces to produce a more sustainable version of the iconic footwear from Salomon’s XT_PU.RE range while maintaining its high performance. Through the collaboration with CARBIOS and FENC, high-quality polyester fibers biorecycled from complex PET waste were provided to SALOMON., SALOMON took advantage of the incorporation of biorecycled polyester to rethink the design of this footwear item to make it fully recyclable (upper and bottom unit).
SALOMON is committed to designing products and responsible innovations that perform well for our users and limit our impact on the environment.
Building on the success of the INDEX range—the first fully recyclable running shoe—SALOMON continues to explore more responsible approaches to product development. The iconic XT_PU.RE model has been redesigned using mainly recycled and recyclable materials, ensuring the durability, comfort, and performance that characterize the brand remain intact. The upper has been completely reengineered in two pieces, featuring premium recycled PET fibers sourced from complex waste. These materials match the quality of virgin fibers in fit, comfort, durability, and color. Combined with the TPU sole of the original model, this redesign results in a fully recyclable urban shoe.
CARBIOS and FENC answer SALOMON’s challenge by providing premium-quality fiber made from 100% biorecycled PET
SALOMON partnered with CARBIOS and FENC to create the upper of this shoe using 100% biorecycled, high-quality polyester fiber. The process began with the treatment of the complex PET waste (coloured, mixed, contaminated) which is currently not recyclable. Using its solvent-free biorecycling technology, CARBIOS broke down this PET waste into its original monomers, PTA and MEG, which were then repolymerized by FENC into fully recycled PET fibers and spun into premium-quality filaments followed by a dyeing process. With its vertically integrated expertise, FENC ensured every step of the process met SALOMON’s high standards, delivering biorecycled polyester yarn ready for performance and durability.
Guillaume Meyzenq, President & CEO, SALOMON:
“We are proud to support this pioneering collaboration with CARBIOS and FENC which represents a major step forward in our quest to manage waste produced by our industry and reduce its impact on the environment.”
Fanny Liao, EVP of RD, FENC:
“FENC has committed to sustainability for more than 36 years with the recycled PET/polyester developments of mechanical, physical, and chemical recycling. Through working with CARBIOS who is dedicated to the biorecycling of PET/polyester, FENC works out all the possibilities of PET/polyester recycling with fully integrated research and production capabilities which creates high-purity recycled feedstock for dropping into existing production lines to manufacture high-quality products with high yields for our name brand customers such as SALOMON.”