Italian clothing company P448 has introduced a new line of shoes to its collection created using the skins of invasive species. The sneakers are from the bluestripe snapper, known locally in Hawaiʻi by its Tahitian name, ta’ape.
The company said this limited collection is dedicated to bring awareness to the issues posed by ta’ape to Hawaii’s fragile ecosystems and highlights a new alternative to the leather category with invasive fish. The company’s Project Sustainability has previously created shoes from the skins of Florida Burmese pythons, carp fish and lionfish.
With electric-blue stripes and lemon-yellow skin, P448 said Ta’ape were first introduced to the eastern shores of the island of Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi seven decades ago from the South Pacific with the intent to provide additional fishing opportunities and food sources for Hawaiʻi. The fish naturally school in the hundreds and even thousands, and quickly swelled to an unwelcomed spread across the 1,500-mile Hawaiian archipelago ranging from shallow reefs to ocean depths of over 6,400 feet. As an invasive species, the ta’ape are competing with native fish for food and habitat, while also causing losses for the local fishing industry by invading and even taking over local fishing spots pushing native fish out of their homes.
Through its partnership with Conservation International—a leading environmental non-profit focused on science, policy, and collaboration with businesses, governments, and communities—P448 has sourced 2,000 ta’ape skins from the island of Moloka’i for this collection. This collaboration builds on the Ta’ape Project, launched in 2020 by Conservation International Hawai’i in partnership with local nonprofit Chef Hui, to encourage consumption of the invasive reef fish, supporting the local economy, improving island food security and reducing the species’ environmental impact.
“Rewiring how we think about invasive species and turning them into leather flips the script and helps protect our reefs and uplift local communities,” said Jhana Young, who leads Conservation International’s work on the project in Hawai‘i. “This is the kind of creative strategy we need in the conservation world now.”
CI’s partnership with P448 is the first outside of the food industry connecting local fishers to the fashion industry to utilize the skins of the caught ta’ape fish for footwear manufacturing. Thus, creating a new market for ta’ape skins while offering a sustainable business opportunity for the community.
“Throughout the globe, climate change is expected to exacerbate the impacts of invasive species. We need to be developing solutions to address this challenge while meeting other growing needs such as food security and community resilience,” said Matt Ramsey, Senior Director, Conservation International’s Hawai’i program. “We are honored to be a part of this innovative collaboration because it does exactly that. By removing ta’ape, the initiative benefits Hawaii’s native marine life, feeds communities, and supports the local economy. Additionally with the lack of government-led programs to tackle the challenge of ta’ape, this initiative directly addresses these gaps.”
Moloka’i, where the fish were sourced by net for this collection, is one of the most rural of Hawaii’s major islands with a population of 7,400 nestled between O’ahu and Maui. The island remains untouched by mass tourism. In fact, there are no traffic lights on the island and no buildings can be constructed taller than a palm tree.
After the fish was tanned, the meat was donated to a local charter school and allocated as food security for people in need within the community. The fish bones were used as fertilizer for a local farm, while the rest of the fish donated to science research at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to aid in its reproduction study on ta’ape.
P448 said it it takes months of research, testing and trial samples to ensure that the skins are able to be properly used in a wearable yet durable pair of P448 sneakers. With sustainability in mind, P448 partnered with Aquaborne, a tannery that specializes in aquatic leather manufacturing utilizing only eco-friendly materials and processes (with no heavy metals nor Chromium 6) to transform the ta’ape into fish leather. The proprietary hybrid tanning method that combines an organic tanning agent with vegetable tanning materials is chrome-free, metal-free, aldehyde-free, and glutaraldehyde-free—plus it is biodegradable.
The company said the process saved 80% of water and energy used when compared to traditional tanning processes. In 7-10 days it produces soft ta’ape fish leather of which two skins are utilized per shoe. For coloring, wet-end leather dyes from Stahl that are free of N-methylpyrrolidone were utilized in the process. These dyes also comply with the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) Manufacturing Restricted Substances List (MRSL).
“Tanning cold-blooded fish skins is completely different than tanning hides from cattle or other warm-blooded animals,” said Nodar Narsavidze, Managing Partner at Aquaborne. “Layered with the fact that each fish skin is unique, the process can become quite complex as what can work with one fish skin may not apply to another fish skin.”
P448 said it strives to work & collaborate with certified suppliers, complaint materials, local factories and eco-friendly components. In this collection, P448 has recycled insoles, GRS certified bottoms, bio-based synthetic leather lining, recycled cotton laces, Evolo recycled suede tongue and heel trim as well as ByPell recycled leather on main body. Ten percent of the $298 purchase price will help Conservation International protect oceans around the globe.
