H&M’s New Sustainable Sneakers Are Made From This Unexpected Fruit

Could your next pair of kicks be made from fruit? If you shop at H&M, they just might be!  Because of a drastic shift in consumer trends away from animal products and manufacturing processes that harm the earth, fashion company H&M plans to launch a completely sustainable range of sneakers made from an unexpected material. The brand teamed up with London-based footwear company Good News to showcase a unisex line of environmentally friendly shoes that will both help the environment and excite consumers.

The collaborative collection will hit stores later this month. The new range will feature a shoe made from Banantex which is derived from banana fibers, creating a leather-like alternative that feels and looks like animal leather. The line consists of seven sneakers and one pair of sliders influenced by seventies style. Beyond the Banantex leather, the sneakers are also made from other sustainable materials.

“Working with Good News gave us such good energy and positivity,” H&M designer David Soderlund said. “Their creativity and drive for change inspired our team. We joined forces to become better together. The collection is a bright and colorful contrast to a grey and uncertain world. I love the color and the innovative materials.”

The shoes incorporate the Bananatex fiber into the black low-cuts while the classic, white running shoes will use Vegea – leather made from wine grape waste. Those two innovative materials will be used alongside a mix of recycled thermoplastic rubber, organic cotton, recycled textile cotton, and Bloom Algae EVA. The company hopes to decrease its carbon footprint in order to provide consumers an opportunity to purchase a shoe with less environmentally damaging manufacturing practices.

“Hopefully, we can inspire action and change for other brands.” Good News co-founder Ben Tattersall said. “We all need to work alongside each other to help create a positive change. The world needs unity right now rather than competing against each other.”

For the fashion giant to feature the sustainable shoe is a big win according to Good News co-founder Nia Jones. Good News’ mission aims to create a product that reduces environmental damage while also sparking conversation about production and its fallout. As more fashion brands lean on the side of caution and sustainability, the new shoe marks a significant shift in fast fashion slowing down to evaluate its standards.

“We’re very proud to be collaborating with H&M, pushing one of the giants to look at every component of a shoe,” Jones said. “It was important for us to make the collection as sustainable as possible while still looking fun and cool.”

The new range of shoes comes nearly one week after houses Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga banned fur from future collections. Fashion lines one by one have been restructuring the way they manufacture clothes and how the products are sourced. This domino effect gains more momentum with each line that backs away from fur, leathers, or any unsustainable material, making H&M’s new line more than like the first of many to come.