Dow launches portfolio of low-carbon material solutions for footwear industry

Singapore – Dow has announced the launch of a portfolio of low-carbon material solutions which can help the footwear industry develop more sustainable products which offer the same high-performance results.

The upgraded portfolio consists of bio-circular materials attributed under a mass balance approach, reversible cross-linking resins, post-consumer recycled resins and polyolefin elastomers for artificial leather in various footwear materials and applications.

One such example is its collaboration with Porto Indonesia Sejahtera, an Indonesian consumer brand specializing in recovery footwear. As the first in Asia to use Dow’s post-consumer recycled polyethylene resins in footwear, Porto Indonesia Sejahtera has incorporated REVOLOOP™ resins in their premium sandal range and flip flops, as part of their vision to drive circular footwear solutions.

Dow’s REVOLOOP™ post-consumer recycled resins for use in footwear soles capture the value of plastic waste and enable a reduced carbon footprint through less use of virgin plastics.

Porto Indonesia Sejahtera President Cipto Liusman said, “We pride ourselves on the quality of our recovery footwear, and Dow’s recycled plastics resins enables us to produce shoes that deliver the comfort that customers expect from us, but with enhanced sustainability. We look forward to more collaboration with Dow in future, to drive sustainable footwear solutions.”

“This expanded portfolio of circular footwear solutions is a significant step in enabling brands and manufacturers to offer sustainable options to consumers,” said Bambang Candra, Asia Pacific commercial vice president for Dow’s Packaging and Specialty Plastics business. “By supporting the footwear industry with low-carbon and circular solutions that enhance product sustainability while maintaining high performance, we reduce reliance on fossil feedstocks and give plastic waste a new life.”

Building on the Dow and Crocs collaboration using bio-circular ENGAGE™ REN polyolefin elastomers (POEs), Dow now offers bio-circular options for ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) and olefin block copolymers (OBC) in the form of ELVAX™ EVA REN and INFUSE™ OBC REN. These are produced using alternative feedstocks made from waste residues or by-products of processes that do not compete with food or feed production, helping to reduce reliance on fossil feedstocks.

These resins from bio-circular feedstocks are International Sustainability Carbon Certification (ISCC Plus) certified under a mass balance approach, allowing customers to account for these materials in their supply chains while also supporting Dow’s target to transform plastic waste and other forms of alternative feedstocks to commercialize 3 million metric tons of circular and renewable solutions annually by 2030.

Dow’s reversible cross-linking resins are an innovative solution enabling footwear materials that are designed for recyclability. They allow used footwear foam slabs to be processed into new resins, which can be reused in foamed products offering comparable performance to those made from traditional EVA/POE/OBC.

Dow’s polyolefin elastomers (POEs) can be used to produce an artificial leather which can enable durability, stain resistance and 25% less in weight than f-PVC (flexible Polyvinyl Chloride) and polyurethane leather for shoe uppers.

This artificial leather is designed for post-consumer recyclability and is produced without the use of plasticizers, solvents and heavy metals, while having low volatile organic compounds (VOC) and odor. It provides a safe and sustainable footwear material option that also offers designers flexibility in color choices, especially light ones.