Sustainability

11 August, 2021

The ASGA Save Our Soles initiative – a program that recovers and recycles tired, unwanted sports shoes – has received an Australian Government grant through the National Product Stewardship Investment Fund (NPSIF), bringing the sporting goods industry one step closer to a sustainable future.

The grant will help grow the industry-funded take-back program, which was prompted by a successful launch in 2019 as a pilot program in Victoria. The initiative has already led to the collection of over 100,000 pairs of shoes for recycling – highlighting the need for a national program.

ASGA has collaborated with major sporting goods brands and renowned retailers which include Nike, adidas, Asics, Converse, Super Retail Group, Globe, JD Sports, New Balance, SportsPower, Frankie4, Brand Collective, Mizuno and Accent Group, to close the loop in the Australian footwear product life cycle chain.

Minister for the Environment Sussan Ley said the new schemes are a slam dunk for the Government, which will invest an additional $4 million in product stewardship funding.

“We think that our product stewardship programs are really ace, and that is why we have now funded 19 projects to the tune of $14.6 million and established the Product Stewardship Centre of Excellence,” Minister Ley said.

“This additional funding means we can create greater capacity in the recycling sector and with that, we will see more brands taking greater responsibility for reducing the environmental impacts of their products.”[1]

ASGA’s President, Andrew Reed, said “this is a landmark day for the Australian Sporting Goods Industry and its stakeholders, as we are now collectively able to accelerate investment towards a more environmentally sustainable future, a critical area of ASGA’s strategic focus.

The investment made by the Federal Government’s grant is a great step forward that will enable significant growth in ASGA’s Save Our Soles footwear recycling program. This will have members in a stronger position nationally to achieve their sustainability objectives, while importantly meeting Australian consumer demands, by providing an easily accessible solution to recycling their pre loved sports shoes.”

ASGA Executive Director, Shaun Bajada, is thrilled to see the sporting goods and active lifestyle industry work together to tackle this immediate waste problem.

“Our industry is committed to building a long-term sustainable footwear recycling solution that will benefit our planet and the community. I am incredibly proud of our members who have helped ASGA create a truly circular footwear recycling platform,” said Bajada.

The program aims to reduce the volume of footwear sent to landfill each year by developing a scalable model for sports shoe recycling Australia-wide. This model involves repurposing pre-loved sports shoes and transforming them into gym mats, retail flooring, playground, and sporting exteriors.

Consumers can conveniently drop off preloved shoes such as athletic lifestyle shoes, sneakers, football boots, hiking boots, golf shoes, thongs, and slides to ASGA retail partners. For more information on the program and to find your nearest collection site visit https://www.asgasosinitiative.com.au.

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For any images, further information or to set up interviews with a brand representative, please contact Tara Ballard (contact details: 0436 330 267 tara@asga.com.au)

About ASGA

The Australian Sporting Goods Association was formed in 1981 to act as the “peak body” representing a broad spectrum of sporting and active lifestyle goods industry participants, including brands, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers.

ASGA is a leading industry voice on issues impacting the health, trade, taxation, regulation, market research, environmental and sustainability areas of the sporting and active lifestyle industries. It aims to foster the market growth, provide services, and advocate for increased participation in sport and physical activity. ASGA is a leading advocate in the industry and is at the forefront of debate and leads industry opinion.

About Save Our Soles

As Recycling Process Lead, Save Our Soles (SOS) manage all resource reclamation activities, from extraction to end product development. Save Our Soles is committed to ensuring that all Shoes that are imported into Australia and New Zealand are recycled and used in this market. Australia imports approximately 100 million pairs into Australia and New Zealand every year and we have to start reusing this valuable product rather than throwing them into landfill.

[1] https://minister.awe.gov.au/evans/media-releases/joint-media-release-new-stewards-bring-hole-one-approach-recycling

As a peak industry body, ASGA serves to lead the Australian Sporting Goods Industry, with sustainability as a core policy of our operations. Many of our members share this sentiment and are actively in support of this vital mission. To further our goal of positive social impact, ASGA hosted its first sustainability forum to address the most immediate and important waste-management challenges faced by manufacturers, brands and consumers in the space.

Held in Melbourne on March 28th, the event centered around a keynote discussion – lead by sustainability expert Nick Harford – that focused on national waste policy and the subsequent obligations of businesses in the sector. The robust dialogue between participants ranged from packaging to the treatment of soft plastics and responsible product stewardship.

Emerging from the unanimous desire to aim towards an environmentally-conscious industry, the conversation culminated with an agreement to form a specialised sustainability committee to lead the charge. This group will be responsible for providing advice and assistance to the Australian Sporting Goods Industry with regards to setting, promoting and achieving sustainability outcomes.

The goals determined by the committee will be achieved through the development of projects that encompass issues and initiatives including community participation, supply chain management and socially-responsible business practices. Based on the input of sector stakeholders, the first project for the committee will involve finding solutions to reduce the environmental impacts of sourcing, manufacturing and disposing of Australian sporting goods.

This inaugural initiative – identified by the forum participants – will specifically address the sporting footwear segment and it’s significant contribution to landfill each year in light of growing consumer demand. Working from the campaign platform created by ASGA, an industry-led approach to repurposing unwanted pairs of athletic shoes will serve as a blueprint for further sporting goods recycling programs in future.

At this precursory stage, the proposed project will involve the deployment of recycling bins within retail stores, serving as collection points for discarded shoes, followed by the conversion of this useless waste into useful manufacturing materials. Through a robust resource reclamation process, we aim to close the loop and provide a best-practice framework for efficient reclamation methodology and subsequent conversion into new products.

ASGA is committed to seeing this project – and many more like it – through to fruition and making a positive difference within the Australian Sporting Goods Industry. If you would like to support the footwear project, or join brands including Nike, New Balance, Russell Athletic and Lululemon as part of the Sustainability Committee, please reach out to ASGA to learn more.

We thank you in advance for your valuable contribution.

Tackling footwear waste from sneakers to football boots

Leading the way to a sustainable industry

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