A team of young Vietnamese in Ho Chi Minh City have offered eco-friendly socks in exchange for plastic bottles as an effort to spread the message of environmental protection.

Named Re.socks, the group organized their exchange at 169 Tran Huy Lieu Street in Phu Nhuan District on Saturday and Sunday after six months of research and preparation.

Fifty percent of the profit gained from the activity will be sent to the Vietnam Clean and Green Organization.

Participants who brought along plastic bottles were given a special type of socks made from recycled plastic bottles.

“The fashion industry is causing many environmental problems, so we planned on promoting sustainable fashion with eco-friendly material,” said Hoang Quy Binh, a member of Re.socks.

“We needed material that can degrade or be recycled after use, and plastic waste discarding criteria.”

The type of plastic used for the production of these socks is PET (Polyethylene terephthalate) as it can be made into small and soft strings.

The PET plastic was first collected from used plastic bottles, before being brought to a factory to be filtered and transformed into plastic beads.

The beads were then turned into plastic strings that were weaved into socks or cloth.

Aside from socks, Re.socks is planning to create other garment products from degradable material such as bamboo and coffee, Binh stated.

“Via this project, we hope people will understand the importance of recycling to prevent wastefulness and protect the environment,” he added.

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