Since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, supply shortages have been hitting shelves all over the world. On top of things like baby formula or books , tampon shortages have been happening as well.
But when asked what the cause of this shortage could be, Proctor and Gamble, parent company of Tampax (which is the largest supplier of tampons in North America), put the blame on Amy Schumer .
Bizarrely, this tampon shortage has been ongoing for months.
Time reports that this shortage has been affecting Tampax and consumers for at least 6 months , but has flown under the radar until now. It seems like people have only recently began to notice.
Amy Schumer starred in a string of popular Tampax commercials in 2020.
Since the commercials began to run, P&G reported seeing a 7.7% increase in demand for their tampons, which has caused them to operate their factories 24/7 to meet up with demands.
But Tampax isn’t the only company that produces tampons.
Sure, Amy Schumer’s commercials may have helped P&G’s sales, but other brands exist, too. Edgewell Personal Care, parent company for Playtex and O.B., is also experiencing a shortage in feminine hygiene products.
In fact, the issue is probably a lot more complex than P&G has made it seem.
Things are rarely as simple as “oh, this one person is actually to blame for an entire supply shortage.” A supply chain has a lot of factors, and when any of them go awry, it messes everything up.
Supply chain disruptions have been happening for years, thanks to the pandemic.
Covid-19 fueled outbreaks that have caused worker shortages in many different industries, including among factory workers. In addition, it’s been much more difficult and expensive to import products and materials.
At the same time, demand for cotton exceeds production.
Cotton is the main material used to make tampons. Because of demand, cotton prices have gone up by 71%, according to Time . This spells bad news for anything that uses cotton (which, of course, includes period products like tampons and pads).
Naturally, the discrepancy between supply and demand will mean higher prices for consumers.
In 2021, P&G announced a price increase for various products , including diapers and tampons. With the current tampon shortage, many fear that prices will go up again, making period care less accessible for some.
And yet, P&G has reported high quarterly sales gains.
According to The Independent , the company has seen its ” highest quarterly sales gains in decades “, and saw a 10% increase in revenue from their feminine care division.
All in all, it doesn’t make sense to simply blame Schumer.
The move was definitely bizarre on P&G’s part, especially considering the fact that Schumer’s Tampax commercials are already a good two years old at this point.
Amy Schumer herself was pretty confused by the whole thing.
In an Instagram post, Schumer showed a screenshot of an article talking about her link to the tampon shortage, captioning it, “Whoa I don’t even have a uterus.”
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In 2021, Schumer underwent surgery to remover her uterus and appendix due to her endometriosis.
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