The World Bank argues that access to affordable and sustainable menstrual products is key to improving menstrual health and hygiene, but millions of women around the world can’t afford these products. This is particularly true in parts of Africa. A World Bank blog points out that a study by UNESCO found that one in 10 girls in Sub-Saharan Africa have missed school while on their period. Another study in Ethiopia found that 50% of girls miss between one and four days of school every month due to menstruation. In Kenya, it is estimated that girls lose an average of four days of school a month, which costs them 165 learning days—of half of a school year—over four years of high school. 

These numbers in Africa are not new and are well known.  What is less apparent is that even in the U.K., a study by Plan International showed that 64% of girls aged 14-21 missed part or a full day of school due to their period, and 13% of girls missed an entire day of school at least once a month.

Some countries, states and cities around the world have passed laws mandating that schools provide period products to students, deeming them as essential as toilet paper. According to a Washington Post article in 2016, New York City was the first in the U.S. to give all women in public schools, prisons and homeless shelters access to feminine hygiene products—free of charge. In fact, U.S. federal prisons only made menstrual products free in 2018, according to the same article. In addition, a study from 2017 showed that nearly one in five girls in the U.S. have missed school due to lack of access to period products.  This data is based on the Always Confidence & Puberty Survey. The first Global Period Poverty Forum, an event where changemakers from around the world came together with a united passion and purpose to discuss menstrual health management practices and advocacy, took place in Australia in October this year. 

Reusable Menstrual Solutions Finding Convergence

What is very interesting about reusable menstrual options is how they are becoming very popular globally, but for many different and even opposing reasons. To make the case even more interesting, much as the reasons for their popularity are totally different, they both address a very relevant and also trending challenge: the environment and achieving a more sustainable approach to menstrual hygiene. Explained another way, reusable sanitary pads, made from cloth mostly, have long been a trend in Africa. The World Bank comments that social entrepreneurs around the world are creating disruptive new solutions and catalyzing change in the sector to provide affordable menstrual products and reproductive health information to women and girls. Non-Governmental and other developmental organizations and social impact entrepreneurs have been supporting some of these initiatives in Africa, India and other emerging markets. In addition to creating viable, cost-effective products for themselves, the NGOs have also been teaching and offering these young women an opportunity to earn an income from selling these reusable products.

Meanwhile, in the developed north, for totally different reasons, the wearable reusable period pants, sometimes with a premium positioning in the market, have also been a trend. In this case, however, cost is not an issue, and in fact, the opposite may be true. The product is positioned as a premium product and with the price tag to fit this positioning. Millennials  seems to be the key driver of the period pants, although a lot more people are now, going with the flow, to use a pun from The Guardian. According to Emilia Greensdale, research analyst at Mintel, between 2018 and 2019, reusable sanitary protection saw a rise while disposable products saw a decline. “This was largely down to the rise in concerns over the environmental impact of plastic.” According to Women’s Environmental Network, a single pair of period underwear can replace 100 or more pads or tampons. 

At the end of the day, reusable period products are on the market in Africa, India, Europe, the U.S. and developed Asia for completely different reasons. In Africa, their popularity is driven by the need to drive down prices. In Europe, the U.S. and developed Asia, these wearable period knickers made from some combination of anti-microbial linings and moisture-wicking fabrics are developed by start-ups and entrepreneurs eager to grab a slice of the £29 billion global menstrual market. These reusable menstrual solutions: while addressing the same healthy, natural and biological event, and effectively, they are also addressing one key issue of our time, sustainability, by keeping a lot of plastics out of landfills. With roughly half of the world’s population being female and needing to use sanitary pads from the age of 12-13 to way into their mid-life, the amount of plastic required is very high. Another blog puts into perspective that 800 million people are menstruating every day. According to the Friends of the Earth website, sanitary pads are made up of 90% plastic and a pack of plastic menstrual pads is equivalent to four plastic bags. Do the math.

Friends of the Earth goes on to remind menstruators that,“Your Period is Plastic” and continues to encourage menstruators to look for organic and eco-friendly alternatives in an advertisement that focuses on “Periods without plastic” and how although individually wrapped, menstrual products are not sterile and are not considered medical devices in the U.K., adding that, “so all that plastic packaging is wasteful.” According to its website, in addition to sanitary pads’ contribution to plastic pollution, a year’s worth of a typical menstrual product impacts on climate change as well, with a carbon footprint of 5.3kg CO2 equivalent. And the average person who menstruates throws away up to 200kg of menstrual products in their lifetime.  They go on to categorize users of sanitary pads into “flushers” and “binners,” arguing that an estimated 1.5 to 2 billion menstrual items are flushed down Britain’s toilets every year, while the majority is incinerated or goes to landfill. Flushing pads and tampons down the toilets cause blockages and worse still, many of these products end up in the sea or washed up on the beaches. The Marine Conservation Society reveals that on average, 4.8 pieces of menstrual waste are found per 100 meters of beach cleaned. That means for every 100m of beach, one finds four pads, panty liners and backing strips, along with at least one tampon and applicator. And of course these also break down into micro plastics, which refers to pieces smaller than 5 millimeters.         

An article in The Guardian entitled “The rise of the period pants,” says “Period pants represent a new frontier in the modern period, enabling women to menstruate without the inconvenience of messy cups or the environmental waste of single use items.” Dr. Freidenfelds, the author of, “The Modern Period” describes the period pants as follows: “As a product, it taps into the market for menstrual products that enable women to handle menstruation so it’s convenient, efficient, never shows and never gets in the way.”

Options for Disposable Menstrual Products

It turns out reusable menstrual products have been around for decades. They have just been overshadowed by their plastic disposable counterparts, who have big budgets enough to take the limelight. Friends of the Earth argues that the cheapest options are often those with the most potential to damage our health and the planet, making this a social and environmental justice issue. And people with the least power have the greatest exposure to dangerous products. An interesting argument made by Friends of the Earth is that no other product used to soak up blood has added fragrance, so why do menstrual products?

Despite the growing trend of period pants, disposable menstrual products will be with us for a long time to come. The question then becomes, what can manufacturers of sanitary pads do to also meet the sustainability benchmark? The disruption in the menstrual market is clearly visible in disposable menstrual products as well, especially in the ingredients and raw materials that go into sanitary pads and other femcare products. More brand owners are looking for more sustainable raw materials and the removal of potentially harmful chemicals from their products. In addition, brand owners are also disclosing more and more of what raw materials and chemicals are present in these products. 

Interesting alternatives include the use of eco-friendly banana fibers in feminine hygiene products from companies in Uganda and Italy. Sugar cane is another option that is slowly being used as an alternative to plastic in packaging. 

Feminine hygiene and related menstrual solutions, by their very nature, will continue to be a social and economic issue. And all parties from manufacturers and brand owners, policy-makers, non-governmental organizations and entrepreneurs, are stepping forward to play their part.