Nike’s signature running shoe goes sustainable
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The Swoosh brand has unveiled a sustainable version of its pinnacle marathon shoe, the Nike Zoom Alphafly Next Nature. “There’s no point having the best running shoes, if we don’t have an Earth to run on,” says Nike (NKE) senior footwear product director Rachel Bull.
“It was the ultimate challenge to take the fastest of our shoes and make it more sustainable,” Bull said.
If the Zoom Alphafly Next Nature looks familiar, it’s because it was a part of running history. It was the shoe that Eliud Kipchoge wore when he broke the 2-hour marathon barrier in 2019. The environmentally conscious version of the record-breaking shoe features the Nike ZoomX midsole composed of at least 70% recycled foam. The Nike Air Zoom Pods featured in the shoe are made partially with recycled TPU and have a propulsive Flyplate that is made with at least 50% recycled carbon fiber. The shoes’ sock liner and laces are made of 100% recycled materials.
The upper is a combination of Nike Flyprint and Flyknit. According to Nike, it creates an upper that is more “containing,” without sacrificing comfort. "You’re seeing the normal energy that the Alphafly is known for combined with the look of raw materials that are true to what makes up the shoe,” says Nike Running Product Manager Elliot Heath.
“This project is different than anything else we’ve ever done. We found creative ways to select processes in which we could use leftover or recycled versions of those pinnacle performance materials,” he said.
Heath says that the shoe is part of Nike's focus on sustainability.
“The exciting thing about pushing performance and sustainability forward is that we know if we can do it with our most pinnacle performance product, then so much is validated to then bring that technology into the rest of the line. We know a huge component of sustainability is scale,” he said.
The Nike Zoom Alphafly Next Nature will retail for $300 and will release later in September.
Reggie Wade is a writer for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter at @ReggieWade.
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