Our Sustainability Goals Towards Reducing Waste
At Tampax, one of our major goals is to reduce our overall impact on the planet. We’re doing this through the careful sourcing of the materials we use, minimizing waste created during the manufacturing process, and the responsible use of resources. You shouldn’t have to choose between effective period products and protecting the planet! First, let’s talk about what’s inside your tampon. To create the absorptive core of Tampax tampons, we use ingredients — such as cotton — that are grown responsibly. You can even trace the origins of the organic cotton used in our Tampax Pure products using your phone, thanks to blockchain technology to trace every step from the field the cotton was grown to becoming a tampon.
Sustainable sourcing means choosing our cotton suppliers based on a number of social, ethical and environmental factors. Translation: We take environmental impact, community resources, and financial stability and transparency into account when choosing where we get the materials for our tampons. These days, we use 30% sustainable materials in our products. To make sure that our sources of materials are up to our standards, we verify it with third-party certification (depending on the Tampax product) such as the Forest Stewardship Council and Global Organic Textile Standard. We’ve also received the OEKO-TEX seal, which ensures that every component of the tampon - we’re talking down to the threads - has been tested for harmful substances and determined harmless.
Tampax also works to minimize manufacturing waste in landfills in the tampon-making process. Since 2009, as part of P&G Fem Care brands, we’ve avoided sending more than 340,000 tons of manufacturing waste to landfills. That’s about the weight of 180,000 cars - so, a lot. We’re also using recycled material to make our cartons. Nearly all of our packaging is recyclable (where recycling programs exist, of course).
The same goes for our suppliers, too, who’ve committed to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions by 30% in the next 5 years. And we’re also big on renewable electricity - whether our sites are powered by renewable sources (meaning it’s generated by renewable energy sources, like solar or wind power), or matched by purchasing renewable electricity credits.
We’re making moves for the environment, but there is still more work to be done. We continuously look at ways to innovate with less environmental impact and more responsible consumption across our products, package and supply chain. Effective period care and protecting the planet? It’s a win-win.
Related articles:
