Environment
As we all try and reduce our use of contemptible singleuse- plastics, it might not have occurred to you to re-think sanitary items. But, as a recent report revealed, sanitary applicators are in the top 10 most common plastic objects found on EU beaches and period products contribute to over 200,000 tonnes of landfill waste each year in the UK alone, meaning they are very big part of the plastic problem. We spoke to Ella Daish, the inspiring woman behind the #endperiodplastic campaign, who tells us why it’s time to cut the plastic from our femcare products.
The campaign focuses on getting plastic out of single-use menstrual products made by supermarkets and manufacturers. This is incredibly important to me not only because of the harmful impact these products have on the environment and wildlife, but also the fact that it is completely avoidable. It all started after I noticed the rubbish during my postal round was getting worse, with bag after bag of waste strewn across the pavements. Thinking of this occurring on a national scale made me question what waste I could reduce myself, and when my period began it dawned on me just how much plastic waste I was creating during one menstrual cycle. I was then shocked to learn that pads contain up to 90 per cent plastic, which is equivalent to four carrier bags. The volume at which they are being produced and disposed of really concerned me too, especially as they take over 500 years to decompose. More worryingly, the people I discussed this with did not know about the plastic in these products — it became clear that I needed to raise awareness of this issue and take action to get manufacturers to go plastic-free, so that these essential products inflict minimum damage.