A Plastics Polemic
Diana Ávila examines the ample supply of tampons with plastic applicators she stocked up on as a plastics ban went into effect in Mexico City. Photo by Jimmy Hernandez
Mexico City’s progressive ban on single-use plastics is hailed as a great step for the environment. But the ban has ignited controversy: It includes tampons with plastic applicators, putting a widely used product out of reach for millions of women
Single-use plastics -- those everlasting forks, cups, mixing sticks, plates, straws, cotton swabs, balloons and trays -- have been swept away from supermarkets, pharmacies and convenience stores in Mexico City.
A law that went into effect on Jan. 1 is part of a long campaign, Basura Cero, or Zero Waste, to curb pollution and the health threat it poses. The initiative has been hailed as a strong environmental step in one of the world’s most populated cities.
But a chorus of complaints is emerging about one common product that many say is a necessary item for women: Tampons with plastic applicators have also been taken off Mexico City store shelves.
For some in Mexico City, the ban forces some quirky shopping near the borderline between Mexico’s Federal District (Mexico City) and the state of Mexico, which cuts through some densely populated neighborhoods. A store on one side of a street may no longer be able to sell the product, so women must cross the street to buy it at another shop in Mexico state.
Critics add that the plastics ban infringes on women’s rights. By making women’s hygiene products harder to get, they say, Mexico City is at odds with a global trend that has countries and municipalities making the vital products easier to get -- free in many places. In Mexico City, the ban has caused the price of hygiene products to jump.
While the law allows some exceptions — items that are deemed necessary — some Mexico City leaders say tampons with plastic applicators are not necessary since other feminine hygiene products remain widely available.
By Franc Contreras and Jimmy Hernandez
Progress or overreach?
The city’s secretary of the environment, Marina Robles, recently told reporters that the plastic products being banned as of January 2021, including the plastic applicator tampon, “are not really indispensable.”
The ban is part of the two-part Article 25 -- the solid waste law for the Federal District -- that began with plastic bags in 2020.
“They cut our right to freely choose how to handle our menstruation,” said Anahi Rodríguez, spokeswoman for Menstruación Digna Mexico. “We are very clear in saying that all women have the right to choose what makes us feel more comfortable.”
The law, Rodríguez said, lacks a gender perspective.
“They needed to be absolutely sure that the tampons that are still permitted are available at an affordable price,” Rodríguez said, referring to organic and cardboard applicator tampons.
“These tampons sell between 50 and 100 pesos each, compared to 4 to 5 pesos for the now-banned plastic applicator tampons,” Rodríguez said. In U.S. dollars, that’s about $4.81 versus 24 cents.
One local Mexico City pharmacy sells the menstrual cup for 664 and 675 pesos. The minimum daily wage for Mexicans is 123.22 pesos (roughly 6.36 USD). The poverty rate in Mexico City is nearly 31% of the population, according to 2018 government figures. And about 2% of the city’s 9 million residents live in extreme poverty, Rodríguez said.
“It’s (the menstrual cup) a big initial investment, it does last, but not all can afford to pay a huge price at once compared to the cost of sanitary pads or tampons,” Rodríguez said. “This, I believe, was not addressed. This could certainly change menstruation from what we consider and call a right to a privilege or luxury.”
As of Jan. 1, sales of products containing single-use plastics, like these straws and cups at a street-side sorbet stand, are banned in Mexico City. Photo by Juan Salvador via Shutterstock
Mexico City legislator Alessandra Rojo de la Vega of the Partido Verde -- the Green Party -- countered with a video posted on Twitter.
“Let's be clear, tampons are not being banned in Mexico City. Women are not being left without alternatives. And we are not against your rights and freedoms. There are still tampon options on the market with nonplastic applicators. And we are promoting the availability of menstrual cups,” Rojo de la Vega said.
Rodríguez was quick to point out that in addition to the cost of nonplastic applicator tampons and menstrual cups, 3% of the city’s population doesn’t have home access to running water.
“Not all women may have running water every day to properly sterilize the cup,” she said.
On Feb. 19, the Menstruación Digna Mexico group sent a formal grievance to Mexico City’s anti-discrimination regulators.
While the organization acknowledges the ban on single-use plastics is good for the environment, “we must be aware of different contexts and inequalities.”
“The government must work with multinational companies responsible for the massive distribution of these products in Mexico City to create conditions for dignified menstrual management, the direct health of consumers, and indirectly, the environment,” the group wrote. By banning plastic-applicator tampons, the group added, officials are discriminating against people in Mexico City who menstruate, while the products remain widely available in every other state.
Supply and demand
The law banning the sale of plastic applicator tampons surprised many women, pushing some to voice their concerns on social media. And women outside of Mexico City offered to send tampons to those who need them.
One Twitter user who lives in Mexico City said she went to the state of Mexico to purchase a year’s supply of tampons. She showed a photo with her receipt indicating she paid a total of 847 pesos for 12 boxes.
But being able to store-hop -- and pay higher prices -- is not something all women can do.
Twitter user “Ines Rdz” (@inesrdlr) said: “How is it that the government pretends that a woman who used tampons at a certain price (but with a plastic applicator) can switch to an environmentally friendly option that costs twice as much or more?”
Elphaba Arthenicen (@Catherineieton), wrote: “Environmental policy must be social. It should help to combat inequalities, not increase them. Menstrual poverty exists, solving it is fundamental to women's economic inclusion.”
A Mexico City government poster introducing the new ban: Good-bye Disposables … including tampons with plastic applicators.
Anahi Rodríguez said the ban on plastic-applicators in tampons came as a surprise; they were not talked about when the list of prohibited products emerged. There’s still a cultural taboo on openly discussing periods
“This culture has led us to believe that menstruation is something intimate, private -- don't talk to anyone, handle it however you can,” she added.
While a plastics ban that includes tampons seems unlikely in the United States, there was an attempt to pass similar legislation several years ago in New Jersey.
“Plastic tampon applicators are needless waste. We can all make better choices,” said Cindy Zipf, executive director of Clean Ocean Action, which spearheaded the New Jersey campaign. “We salute the successful work that led to their banning in Mexico City. We tried it years ago but were unsuccessful.”
Zipf acknowledged that many women use tampons with plastic applicators. “But there are environmentally better alternatives available.”
The war on period poverty
Mexico’s limiting of womens’ hygiene products contrasts with moves to expand supplies in places like Scotland, which last November became the first country to pass legislation making sanitary products free.
Scotland also requires that local authorities ensure period products are free and available in schools. Public service agencies must also provide the products.
On Feb. 18, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the country’s schools will provide the products, for free, starting in June.
“Young people should not miss out on their education because of something that is a normal part of life for half the population,” Ardern said.
“Removing barriers to healthy, active, educational outcomes for children and young people is an important part of the Government’s Youth and Wellbeing Strategy.”
A few days later France joined in, ruling that period products be available, free, in schools.
Even in Mexico, on March 2, Michoacán became the first Mexican state to pass a law guaranteeing free menstrual products in public schools. The state law also mandates that period education be part of public school sex-education programs.
Such laws are an attempt to end period poverty, which is common around the world: Women and girls often miss days of school and work because they cannot afford sanitary products.
Anahi Rodríguez, of Menstruación Digna Mexico, said the organization has been working with lawmakers for the past two years to provide free sanitary products. She points to the Michoacán legislation as a result of their efforts.
Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum is a driving force behind the plastics ban. Photo byOctavio Hoyos via Shutterstock
One law, eliminating taxes on menstruation products, was introduced in Mexico’s congress. Another law was introduced to provide free period products in schools across the country.
In Mexico City, local legislator Paula Soto, of the country’s ruling Morena party, proposed making period products free. She wants menstruation to be considered a public health issue, thus meriting the distribution of safe and reusable products.
Legislator Alessandra Rojo de la Vega also introduced legislation to reform the city’s health law so it recognizes menstruation as a part of the reproductive rights of girls and women. The bill includes a provision to provide free products to anyone who needs them.
On Twitter, Rojo de la Vega urged that the "government give away menstrual cups and where there is no access to (running) water and basic plumbing, provide access to free tampons or sanitary pads … ”
In a separate post she added: “The inequalities begin here. In this country sometimes you have to choose to eat or buy these products. Women should not have to pay for such basic necessities.”
School-age girls in Mexico miss school because they can’t afford the products, Rodríguez said, adding that girls lose one month of school because of this, and that is where gender inequality begins.
“No girl should have to miss school because she has her period,” Rodríguez added. “We can’t say whether we menstruate or not this month.”
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Vicki Adame is an award-winning multimedia journalist who has focused on the lives and struggles of immigrants and communities of color. Her work has appeared in CTLatinoNews.com, Latino Rebels and Latino USA, among other publications, and she has translated articles for El Faro in El Salvador. Since 2018 she has split her time between Mexico City and California.
Franc Contreras is a freelance journalist based in Mexico City. In the last three decades he has covered Latin America for China Global Television Network, Al Jazeera English, and the BBC World Service Radio. In the early 1990s, he was an assistant producer for NPR’s All Things Considered, based in Washington, D.C. He was also part of the team that created Latino USA in Austin, Texas.
Jaime “Jimmy” Hernandez is an Emmy-award-winning videographer who began his career in 1989 as a sound recordist for ABC News. Hernandez’s work has appeared on many global television news and documentary channels including Discovery, the History Channel, Telemundo and Univision. He is based in Mexico City.