Sneakers Made of Apples? Tasty!
Our APL collection is made out of Apple Leather (or Apple Skin). A perfect high-quality
& vegan alternative for animal Leather.
A cellulose-based material with at least 30% of recycled apple fiber. A versatile, durable, bio-based and high-quality alternative to leather with a low
environmental impact. All the stuff that's left behind when producing apple juice is what
we call the good stuff, because we can use it to make a pair of sneakers. Isn't that
crazy?
A renewing, ecological alternative to animal leather. 100% vegan and cruelty free."
Environmental impact
Farmers tend to leave up to 40% of their harvest in the fields, because it does not meet the cosmetic standards for the supermarkets. Collecting and recycling this waste and discarded fruits means less waste from the foodindustry.
No cows or other livestock is involved in developing the vegan leather saving greenhouse gasses and methane emission.
The tanning of the vegan leather is a lot cleaner and not as polluting, as the one used in conventional leather production so the toxins used in the tanning process is reduced.
The leather is vegan which means that it is 100% cruelty free.
Composition (coating):
- Apple Waste: 52%
- Polyurethane 48%
Mabel confirms that AppleSkin articles comply with REACH regulations and are PVC free.
More info on REACH: https://ec.europa.eu/environment/chemicals/reach/reach_en.htm
Production process
The material is based on apple waste of the Italian fruit and juicing industry, which is recovered by Frumat. Frumat grinds the residuals, such as stems and peels, into a fine powder.
This powder is mixed with a powder blend of polyester, PU, cotton, and viscose, necessary to give the material strength and durability. The powder is then delivered to Mabel Synthetic, where it is mixed into a liquid material.
The liquid is pumped into large containers where it transforms into a solid state. After that, the solid material is pressed to get the look of a fabric, it is colored and then goes into a large oven to dry. In the final step of the production process, the inside lining is attached and the material ready to be pressed, for example with a Croco print to create our Croco effect leather. Small leftovers of the material are melted and reused for producing new batches.
Our Partner Frumat
Frumat® was founded in 2009 in Italy and is active in the transformation of biological industrial residuals from the production of apple juice into new raw materials for the development of innovative products.
Frumat® works closely with Italian juice companies making the AppleSkin™ a 100% Italian material.
Frumat® partners with MABEL, an Italian textile company, providing their facilities to produce the material. Their collaboration helped develop a sustainable material with high technical specifications, composed up to 50% of retrieved industrial waste that would have been otherwise destroyed with all annexed costs and damages to the environment.