Soil is not just a new fabric or colorway, for us it marks a huge step forward. For the first time in the history of ekn footwear we get to encorporate a fully biodegradable material into our shoes! Furthermore Soil is also 100% vegan, organic and made using only 3 natural ingredients: natural rubber, viscose fibers and mushrooms.
Check out the Daisy Soil
Natural rubber is plays an important role in giving Soil the strength and durability necessary to be used in footwear. It is extracted from rubber trees in a way that does not damage the plant and allows for continuous harvesting. The features of natural rubber make it the perfect replacement for traditional materials, since it is water repellant and can easily be given any kind of texture to look and feel like leather.
Check out the Yucca Soil
There are several reasons why mushrooms are also a key ingredient of Soil, the most important one being that they are a natural material, which is biodegradable. With similar properties to the natural rubber, the mushrooms can be used to replace some of it, which actively combats the waste of natural ressources. That‘s because all the mushrooms used for Soil are leftovers from the food industry, that are not suitable for selling and would otherwise be thrown away. Since they grow very easily, there is no need for fertilizers or other chemicals which means that the mushrooms are completely organic.
Check out the Larch Soil
In order to be resilient enough for the tough requirements of footwear, the mix of natural rubber and mushrooms needs to be reinforced. This is done using viscose fibers, which are produced from wood that is sourced only from sustainable plantations. These regenerative, renewable and sustainably managed forests allow for a closed loop production process. The viscose fibers in Soil are 100% nature-based and made without using any additional substances.
Check out the Alder Soil
Consequently, the material can fulfil all the important criteria for truly environmentally friendly shoes: it is biodegradable, vegan and organic. Thus, Soil brings us a significant step closer to the dream of a compostable shoe.