Supply chain disruptions forcing Americans to search far and wide for essential products like baby formula continue to hamstring the availability of an important, yet perhaps unsuspecting feminine hygiene product: tampons.
A shortage of the item, while perhaps surprising for many Americans, is the latest product that is hard to come by on grocery store shelves due to lagging supply coming out of the pandemic, thanks to everything from staffing issues to a limited supply of the cotton and plastic materials used in the product.
One of the major tampon producers — Procter & Gamble, which makes Tampax — went so far as to cite actress Amy Schumer’s series of commercials for the company promoting tampons.
“Retail sales growth has exploded” since the comedian’s ad campaign hit the airwaves in 2020, P&G spokeswoman Cheri McMaster told Time magazine. The company said demand is up 7.7% over the past two years and that factories are running 24/7 to meet demand.
But the shortage is not exclusive to Tampax. The problem persists for name and store brands alike, and major retailers and local grocery stores continue to feel the impact.
