As oil reserves run low and discarded plastic starts to choke our oceans, recycled sunnies are becoming an international buzzword.
Humans send eight million metric tonnes of plastic into the marine environment each year and the pollutant has been found as far south as the Antarctic and as deep as the Mariana trench. As New Zealand steps up its attempts to remove plastic from our lives, many companies are starting to focus on the end of life of their products, and how they can be reused. That’s where recycled sunwear comes in.
“I grew up by the sea in Sweden, and travelled the world as a surfer,” says Robbert Wefers Bettink, co-founder of Dick Moby, a recycled sunglasses company that launched in 2014. “Most surfers rely on plastic sunglasses, and you see them discarded on the beach. We (Robbert and his business partner Tim) wanted to make sunglasses that were easier on the environment.”
Recycling acetate turned out to not be an option at first, so the pair developed their own bio-acetate. Later, along with acetate producer Mazzucchelli, they were able to process acetate waste into their black frames, which are made from made from 97% recycled industrial PET and 3% colour. They use Teflon coated screws and Zeiss lenses to improve the longevity of the product, and they look super cool too. Even their cases and cleaning cloths are made from recycled materials.
“We hope that by wearing these glasses people will also think more about their impact on the environment.”
