When it comes to sustainable eyewear, Local Supply are firmly on the mark this summer.

The stylish producer is disrupting the eyewear industry by using plant-based materials to produce their frames and using custom production methods that minimise waste and carbon emissions.

The latest collection from Local Supply, SS21, has been crafted with more than five years of research, testing and trialling of materials to create an innovative collection of plant-based modern silhouettes.

The collection relaunches a selection of Local Supply’s best-selling designs in their new plant- based material and introduces five brand new frames to the range. Named after iconic cities around the world, the frames are designed for locals everywhere.

“Traditional eyewear production is extremely labour and material intensive, with over 90% of raw material ending up as (non-recyclable, non-bio-degradable) scrap on the factory floor,” said Local Supply Founder, Sean Satha.

“The slowdown earlier this year (due to Covid) gave us an opportunity to implement some major improvements that we’d been working on for several years.

“As a result, our latest range represents a huge step forward in terms of sustainability, design and innovation. By implementing zero-waste production processes, we’ve been able to minimise our environmental impact by using a sustainable Swiss-made plant-based resin throughout our entire new range, while still keeping our starting price under $100,” he said.

The signature plant-based resin used in all Local Supply frames is sustainably sourced and produced in Switzerland. The resin is derived from castor bean plants grown in semi-arid areas, not competing with food crops for land. Once the plants are harvested the resin is produced in a facility that’s powered by biofuels.

By using this plant-based alternative Local Supply’s carbon emissions are reduced by an impressive 50% when compared with the crude-oil based plastics used in other eyewear frames.

To produce each frame, Local Supply also use a custom injection moulding process. The process makes 10x more frames per kg of raw material than that of traditional acetate production. This allows for more efficient and waste free production.

For added innovation to SS21 Local Supply have introduced blue light blocking lenses to the range. The lenses are designed to reduce eye strain caused by harmful blue light emitted from electronic screens which can lead to sore eyes, headaches, and interrupted sleep.

A selection of SS21 styles will be available with these lenses for a positive-impact option that can be worn all-day every day.