Procter & Gamble blames Amy Schumer for lack of Tampax tampons after ‘successful’ ad campaign

Procter & Gamble is blaming the comedians Amy Schumer Tampax ran a run on those products, blaming the successful advertising campaign for a lack of tampons, which forced the company to keep the factory operating 24 hours a day to meet growing demand.

The campaign was started by P&G, America’s most popular tampon brand, in July 2020 as a friendly tampon supplier with Schumer, 41, front and center, who pops up in the toilet when someone needs a product.

But now the sudden arrival of Tampax tampons in ‘many parts of the country’ is difficult. Time magazine reported.

While the company points to its celebrity ad, claiming it has to run its main factory 24/7 to meet demand, supply chain issues related to COVID-19 have hit US stores hard .

From toilet paper to baby food and now tampons, supplies of essentials have run out after factory closures and staff shortages. In the latest shortfall, P&G admitted it was having trouble obtaining materials for tampons and then shipping the finished products.

Evidence of the shortage has spread on social media, with women posting pictures of empty shelves at pharmacies and big box stores like Target and Walmart.

‘WTF! Looks like there’s a shortage of tampons,’ Amanda Christine posted along with a photo of empty shelves. ‘I’ve been to two pharmacies and Target. Really?? As if the menstrual cycle is already no discomfort.’

Kimberly Georgkopoulos posted a similar photo on Facebook and said ‘this with two girls’ [shortage] Cannot be done.’

Another asked, ‘Is there a shortage of tampons!!!! 2 went to the store and they both looked like this. uhh can’t happen to 2 girls!!!!’

Dana Marlowe, founder of I Support the Girls, an organization that provides bras and feminine hygiene products to the homeless, told TIME she’s seen a decline in tampon donations.

‘What’s been going on for a few months is that organizations call us and say, ‘We need tampons,’ and we go to our warehouse and there’s nothing,” she said.

Time reported that during the first six months of this year, the group received just 213,075 tampons, which is half as much as last year’s same period and 61% less than in 2020.

According to the magazine, with Tampax tampons becoming scarce off shelves, some Amazon sellers are ‘taking advantage of the shortage’.

In January, a box of 18 tampaks ‘listed for $114, about $6 more – per tampon – than typically paid by women.’

As prices rise, Tampax says it achieved its biggest sales in decades in the most recent quarter.

“Retail sales picked up,” company spokeswoman Cheri McMaster told Time magazine. She said there has been a 7.7% increase in demand since 2020. McMaster claims that this was cut short compared to the commercials that ran during that time.

However, P&G noted in a recent earnings call that it was having trouble sourcing raw materials for tampons and other feminine care products, as well as delivering them to trucks and retailers.

As Time reports, the raw materials that go into tampons, including cotton, rayon, and sometimes pulp and plastic for applicators, have been some of the most sought-after raw materials during the pandemic, as these materials into medical products.

Sheng Lu, a professor in the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies at the University of Delaware, said this is the third year in a row that demand for cotton has exceeded production.

Lu told TIME, ‘Tampons are a major product – a necessity of life. ‘If you look at the pricing strategy for the big players, they will consider more price hikes for these essential products.’

Thyme Sullivan, CEO of The Organic Project, which makes tampons in Europe, told TIME that the cost of bringing its tampons to the US is 300% higher than last year. Instead of shipping, the company started flying biodegradable wrappers for its feminine care products out of Italy because shipping has become so difficult and expensive.

Tampons aren’t the only essential item that’s been hard to find in stores lately.

Ashley Afonso Coughlin posted a photo of empty shelves on social media as well as a comment about her frustration with both the lack of tampons and the recent lack of formula.

She wrote, ‘As if the lack of formula wasn’t bad enough, obviously we’ll have to look for tampons too.

A nationwide baby formula shortage began when the largest baby formula factory in the US closed in February after a bacterial contamination and has since worsened nationally.

Abbott Laboratories finally reopened infant formula production Saturday at its facility in Sturgis, which met FDA requirements last month.

Abbott would then resume production of all other formulas, with the plant having previously said it would take six to eight weeks to replenish stock at stores.

According to data from Datasembly, out-of-stock rates climbed 74 percent across the US for the week ended May 28 – four percent more than a week ago.

Additionally, 10 states now have stock rates of 90 percent or higher, including Arizona, Mississippi, California, Nevada, Tennessee, Rhode Island, Louisiana, Florida, and Washington.

Georgia is hardest hit at 94 percent, up from 74 percent a week ago.

In an effort to curb shortages, the FDA has worked to make it easier to import foreign-produced baby formula.

Meanwhile, Biden’s administration announced on Friday that it would bring 1.3 million cans of Gerber formula from Mexico starting next month.

The closure of the country’s largest formula factory in February caused supply problems, forcing some parents to pick up formula from food banks, friends and doctor’s offices.

The company’s recall and shutdown triggered a cascade of effects. Retailers have limited customers’ purchases to conserve supply and have asked parents to switch brands to whatever formula is in stock.