These Shoes Are Made From Chewing Gum Found on the Streets of Amsterdam

If you’ve been looking for a sustainable alternative to your regular footwear, these shoes may be for you. Gumshoe is the first-ever shoe made from recycled chewing gum.

Anna Bullus is the British designer at the heart of the chewing gum recycling movement. She found that chewing gum is made from synthetic rubber similar to plastic that could be turned into a new material called Gumtec to create new objects. She founded Gumdrop and launched gum bins all over the UK to facilitate the recycling of chewing gum.

Photo: Gumdrop ltd/Facebook

This time around, Bullus is collaborating with the city of Amsterdam and the fashion brand Explicit to recycle the 3.3 million pounds of gum litter found on the city’s pavements each year, which costs the city millions to clean. The Gumshoe’s sole is composed of recyclable compounds, which are 20 percent gum collected from the streets of Amsterdam, while the rest of the shoe is made of leather.

Photo: Gumdrop ltd/Facebook

They are currently being sold in bubblegum pink or black and red, for about $225. Check the Explicit website to get a pair.