Jhongpu Township Farmers’ Association and Betel Life, a footwear company, said they are set to make a splash in the US market this year with betel leaf sandals they jointly designed three years ago, with the company saying more than 100,000 units have been sold worldwide.
Betel Life owner Lu Chien-liang (盧建良) said he got the idea for betel leaf sandals from college students in Jhongpu Township (中埔) Chiayi County.
Lu said he developed the students’ use of the leaves as footwear and designed a range of sandals to appeal to the global trend toward eco-friendly products with the help of local shoemaking factories.
Photo: Lin I-chang, Taipei Times
Association staffer Fang Yi-wei (方顗瑋) said that as part of an industrial transformation program introduced by the county government, farmers made 30,000 inner soles from betel leaves because they produce an organic fragrance and the pores help sweat to vaporize, which keeps feet dry.
However, the product failed as the cushions were too difficult to fit into shoes.
Lu said that the sandals retain all the good qualities of the inner soles and the product has an Ecosecure certificate from the Societe Generale de Surveillance, which shows that the footwear is completely eco-friendly.
“The key is in the selection of leaves. You have to use suitable leaves that do not have mildew. The leaves are properly dried and cut into shape,” he said. “It only takes two betel leaves to make a pair of sandals.”
Lu said his company last year inked a contract with a well-known US-based fashion brand, which he declined to name, while he was at a fair in the US.
The first shipment as part of the US contract, marketed under the company’s name, was 1,800 units, which are priced at US$45 a pair, he said.
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