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The GYRE SeaCleaner is a sports watch made out of recycled ghost fishing nets, taken from the Indian Ocean - where the need for clean-up is greatest. This new Dutch watch brand focuses on raising awareness of the plastic soup problem and contributes to stopping the flow of plastic into the oceans and removing it.
 
After three years of development, the SeaCleaner is finally finished. “We have come a long way. The recycled material has hardly been used yet, so we have encountered all possible problems," said creator and founder Bernard Werk. “From a very fragile case to one that even partially dissolved in water. That’s why the satisfaction was even greater at the end of January, when we were finally able to wear the first working prototypes.”
 
GYRE is a symbol of change, without compromising on style and comfort. A French design, a high-quality Japanese solar powered movement - no need for battery replacement - and assembly that takes place in The Netherlands. To keep it ‘green’, GYRE sticks to a black case. As this is the original color of the recycled material and the only possible way to make everything as sustainable as possible.
 
Local fishermen collect the fishing nets from the sea and deliver them to the recycler. They receive a fee for this, which means GYRE also contributes to the local economy. The nets are then cleaned and made into pellets for the watch case. GYRE is currently working on the last steps to make a strap that is also made out of fishing nets. The strap is now made entirely out of recycled plastic bottles.
 
GYRE aims to raise awareness and will support this from the launch with concrete actions. Co-founder Jorrit Niels: "We will support beach clean-ups and participate in local programs that address the issue at its source."
 
Although all kinds of plastic are found in the world’s oceans, fishing nets are among the biggest concerns. A recent survey done by The Ocean Cleanup, states that at least 46 percent of the plastic found in the ‘Great Pacific Garbage Patch’ -  a floating plastic gyre the size of France, Germany and Spain combined - is made up of fishing nets. A massive 640,000 tons of these ‘ghost fishing nets’ are left in the seas every year. This adds greatly to the pollution, but also damages coral reefs and traps vast numbers of sea creatures.