The German outdoor manufacturer Vaude is launching the first bike bag made entirely from recycled main materials. The biggest novelty here is the back panel: it consists entirely of German plastic packaging waste.
This makes the ReCycle Pro Single the first fully recycled bike bag on the market. And another step towards the circular economy: the fabric of Vaude’s bike bags has been made from recycled materials for a long time, so now it’s the whole bag.
In order to obtain the necessary know-how in the field of circular economy for the production, the German brand has teamed up with two specialists: one is Interseroh, an environmental service provider that closes product, material and logistics loops. The latter provides the expertise to produce the recycled plastic of the back plate from post-consumer waste from the yellow bin or the yellow bag in Germany.
The second new partner is the recycling technology specialist APK. The fastening hooks of the recycled packaging bag come from their high-purity recyclates, which are obtained from waste from multi-layer films for packaging.
Despite the recycled materials, the bike bag offers what cyclists appreciate: It is waterproof, suitable for everyday use and robust. The main compartment with folding lid and two zipped compartments holds 18.5 litres, which is enough for small purchases and office supplies. It has a detachable shoulder strap. The ReCycle Pro Single underlines its environmental compatibility by the fact that due to the so-called Eco Finish technology, PFCs (perfluorinated and polyfluorinated chemicals) can be dispensed with, and PVC is also not included. Vaude claims that its production is climate-neutral in Germany and offers a five-year guarantee on the recycled packaging bag. It will be on sale from October 2021.
Text: Stefanie Weinberger
Pictures: Vaude
