American chemical firm Huntsman Corp. and specialty safety and German occupational footwear firm Steitz Secura have developed a polyurethane solution to help improve the circularity of safety footwear.

The two created a polyurethane midsole system called Daltoped that can incorporate recycled content — essentially scrap — that does not compromise performance for use in protective footwear production.

Polyurethane provides comfort and protection in safety shoes, but how to deal with the scrap generated during production has been a challenge. With the new technique from Steitz and an external partner, Huntsman can use its Daltoped system to introduce recycled polyurethane into new shoe components without needing change existing processing or chemistry workflows. Huntsman said the performance of the new shoe components is “on par with virgin materials.”

Huntsman said the process has undergone rigorous development and industrial-scale trials with Steitz to ensure safety, durability, comfort and performance.

“By taking our own [polyurethane] scrap and reusing it, we have been able to manufacture new midsoles containing 20 percent recycled content,” Wolfgang Burkhard, head of PUR at Steitz Secura, said. “Together with Huntsman and a technology partner, we have been working to push up this percentage and can now increase the recycled content of new midsoles up to 30 percent.” He added that the creation of Daltoped is an example of the firm’s “commitment to innovation and sustainability, and to finding smarter, cleaner ways to make high-performance footwear.”

Alex Stepuk, Huntsman’s business development circularity manager, said: “By working closely together, we’ve developed a scalable way to recover and repurpose valuable polyurethane material — helping to meet growing demand for circular, high-performance safety footwear with zero compromise on quality.”

Younger consumers are changing the boot industry by demanding sneaker-like comfort. Wolverine Worldwide’s namesake boot brand this summer introduced its Made-in-America program for work boots against a backdrop of persistent talk over reciprocal tariffs. The first product to launch from a partner facility in Texas is the Workshop Wedge boot, and it comes at a time when companies are seeking ways to lower their cost structure due to tariffs on imported goods. And last month, Adidas said it was getting into the safety footwear category in partnership with protective equipment firm GLO Brands B.V. The Adidas Pro Work line is expected to debut in the second quarter of 2026 via select distribution partners and channels.