In the run-up to this year’s North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), Ford announced a plan to recycle around 2 million used plastic bottles for use in its Focus Electric vehicle. The plastic will be diverted from landfills and converted into REPREVE fabric that can be used for seating in the Focus. Done in collaboration with REPREVE’s makers at Unifi, the company will be carrying out their plan by first collecting used plastic bottles at this week’s NAIAS in Detroit.

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REPREVE’s seat fabric is produced from a blend of recycled bottles and other post-consumer waste — each car interior will use an estimated 22 polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles. As only 29% of plastic bottles are recycled in the U.S, this seat fabric recycling initiative could help to raise awareness that recyclers everywhere need to up their game.

The Focus Electric is the first Ford vehicle to feature 100% green technology.

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Images courtesy of Unifi and Ford in Europe