german brand reveals shoes made of olive leaves

german family-run brand thies launches a sustainable footwear line made from ‘olivenleder’, or ‘olive leather’, a leather tanned from olive leaves left over from the harvest. the shoes for women, men, and children use patented ‘wet-green’ method for producing ultra-fine leather of the substance developed by olive trees to ward off predators. 

OBE, the active ingredient of wet-green, is recovered from the leaves of the olive tree using a method similar to brewing tea and manufactured in plants complying to the stringent demands of the food industry. no tree is felled, no plant sacrificed and no fields cultivated which would otherwise be used to produce food.

the olive leaves used for wet-green are a by-product from olive growers and in many locations are actually burned. while the children shoes are completely made from the olive leather, the sneakers feature a real rubber outsole and veggie tanned, chrome-free lining. the retail price is expected to be 160 € for the unisex sneakers and 70 € for the baby shoes. 

product info:

design: thies

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edited by: maria erman | designboom