At the latest Ispo Munich show, on Jan. 26-29, Chiruca presented Cloe, a boot made entirely of recycled or sustainable materials. Its synthetic nubuck – which can be used for compost – consists of polyester derived partly from plastic bottles and partly from corn that is unfit for human consumption and grown with one-tenth of the irrigation needed for standard cultivation. The boots use a canvas that is 70 percent recycled cotton in front and 100 percent recycled PET in back. The sole is 25 percent recycled rubber shavings, which Chiruca is now striving to source entirely from the waste of its own polyurethane manufacturing. Some 40 percent of the antibacterial slipsole is made of sustainably sourced biodegradable bamboo and the rest of recycled polyamide. The lining is made entirely of PET, the laces and labels of recycled polyester, and the hooks of recycled sheet metal. The upper and sole are joined with water-based glue. The Cloe is only the first model in a planned Vita line, which stems from an overarching “Vita Plan” encompassing all of Calzados Fal’s efforts in the way of environmentalism and sustainability. As we have previously reported, Chiruca maintains a 15-hectare tract where it has planted some 16,000 trees to offset its carbon emissions, and there are plans to expand it by 10 hectares. The company is also now using water-based waterproofing treatments and glues, as well as boxes of recycled cardboard, and has introduced socks made of recycled plastic bottles.

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