AusLeisure

Having lauched its Ecolast™ swimwear range, made from ocean waste last month, swimming products manufacturer Zoggs has announced a partnership with Healthy Seas.

Healthy Seas is a not-for-profit initiative with a mission to protect oceans and marine life by collecting abandoned fishing nets that are then transformed by Aquafil into ECONYL® yarn to create sustainable products.

Working with divers, schools, NGOs and governments, Healthy Seas is responsible for the retrieval of ghost fishing nets, raising awareness of the environmental damage these nets cause.

It’s estimated 640,000 tons of fishing equipment is discarded in our oceans every year, each taking hundreds of years to decompose.

The Healthy Seas initiative also collaborates with fishermen, fish farms and local communities to prevent these nets ending up in the sea by helping to source responsible solutions. You can watch a recap of the ghost fishing removal dive, organised by Healthy Seas and Cousteau Divers, for World Oceans Day.

The fishing nets recovered by Healthy Seas are cleaned of foreign materials and prepared for regeneration by Aquafil. The nylon in these nets is then turned into a raw material (with other debris such as industrial waste and carpet) and transformed into ECONYL® yarn by Aquafil.

Along with Zoggs’ Ecolast™ swimwear, ECONYL® yarn can be used to create new products like underwear, socks and carpet.

Since the ‘Healthy Seas, a Journey from Waste to Wear’ initiative was launched in 2013, divers and fishermen have collected over 375,000 kilograms of fishing nets.

The partnership will see Zoggs donate 10% of its Ecolast™ swimwear profits to the Healthy Seas initiative while also working together on other initiatives such as running beach cleans, supporting conservation events and joining Healthy Seas on some of their dives.

Announcing the partnership, Zoggs International Chief Executive Mark Hammersley stated “as a brand, it’s our responsibility to help tackle environmental issues such as the health of our oceans.

“We’re passionate about making a difference and look forward to working in partnership with Healthy Seas to protect our world for the future." Mark Hammersley, CEO at Zoggs International

Zoggs’ Ecolast™ swimwear collection will form 40% of the brand’s swimwear collection from January 2019.

Ecolast™ is made using 78% ECONYL® yarn and 22% LYCRA® XTRA LIFE™ resulting in a soft, comfortable, high performance swimwear fabric.

Click here to find out more about Healthy Seas.

Images: Healthy Seas collecting abandoned fishing nets (top) and Zoggs’ new Ecolast™ swimwear collection (below).

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