Recycled Rubber

Recycled rubber yoga mats are made from post-consumer rubber waste — typically reclaimed from bicycle tires, car tires, or industrial rubber products. This gives discarded rubber a second life as a high-performance yoga mat, reducing landfill waste and the demand for virgin rubber production.

Sources of Recycled Rubber

The most common source is recycled car and bicycle tires. Tire rubber is highly durable, weather-resistant, and provides excellent grip characteristics — properties that translate well to yoga mat performance. Some manufacturers blend recycled rubber with natural rubber to optimize performance.

Brands like Jade Yoga and several European manufacturers have pioneered recycled rubber mats, with Jade famously using recycled rubber in some of their mat lines while planting trees for each mat sold.

Performance Comparison

Recycled rubber generally performs comparably to virgin natural rubber:

• Grip: Excellent, comparable to natural rubber
• Cushioning: Very good — rubber density provides joint protection
• Durability: High — recycled tire rubber is designed for longevity
• Smell: Can have a stronger rubber odor than natural rubber mats

Environmental Impact

Choosing recycled rubber provides multiple environmental benefits:

• Diverts rubber from landfills
• Reduces demand for new rubber cultivation or petrochemical production
• Extends useful life of rubber that has already been manufactured

The main limitation is that recycled rubber is still rubber — it will eventually end up in landfill at end of product life unless specific recycling programs exist for the mat itself.