MENSTRUAL CUP COMPANIES RESPOND

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Submitted Date 06/12/2020
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In early April 2020, I posted an article on WriteSpike about a letter I sent to 15 menstrual cup brands (link to that article below). I asked them to, presented with the then-emergent COVID-19 pandemic, make a donation of cups to healthcare workers on the front lines. I chose the top brands I could find all over the world. There was no specific hospital I requested that donations go to, I simply suggested that they should help their own communities. Admittedly, this was not a very organized campaign. I only wanted to make the suggestion and see what I got back.

Not all of the companies I reached out to responded. I expect my emails either got buried under a flood of consumer questions or neglected by staff who were absent because of social distancing and closures. One replied to my email with generic auto-generated letters that didn't even address my initial concern. Several told me that donating cups was a great idea, but they couldn't for one reason or another. A couple, even though they'd donated already, offered to work with me if I developed more defined plans for the cups.

Here's a breakdown of the responses coming into my inbox to date:

Most of those who did respond (eight in total) were very nice and offered to help or explained their situation. Those responses are quoted below.

DivaCups

"Dear Jen,

Thank you very much for your email and for your passion for helping those on the front lines of the COVID-19 crisis get access to the period care products they need. Rest assured we are working hard to support our local health care workers through financial contributions to area hospitals and donations of DivaCups through our DivaCares program.

We have also increased our donations of DivaCups to our community partners such a PERIOD the Menstrual Movement and I Support the Girls to help as many people effected during these challenging times as possible.

In addition, if you have a particular medical organization you would like us to evaluate for a donation you can submit a donation request to the DivaCares program here .

Thank you again for your email.

Warm Regards,

The DivaCares Team"

 

Organicup

"Thanks for getting in touch.

We agree and we'd love to help the people in the frontline by giving them cups. We have just today been approached by an employe with the NHS in the UK and we are sending 30 cups their way.

We would be very happy to donate to the people working in healthcare, but there are usually more bureaucracy involved than we would like. If you know someone in healthcare who's interested in receiving our donation, please do not hesitate to put them in touch with us."

 

Saalt

"Thank you for your very kind message. We are doing our part and have donated to several local hospitals, as well as some hospitals around the world who have requested cups. We are happy to help during this challenging time for those who need it most."

 

Lena Cup

"Thank you for reaching out to us about your concern for healthcare workers and your hope to provide them with menstrual cups.

Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 situation our donation program is currently on hold. As a company, we want to prioritize the health and wellbeing of those who would be involved in the processing and delivery of our donations and we have decided to postpone all donation shipments until a later date.

However, we are exploring ways to support our healthcare workers during this time. May I ask if you are working directly with a local hospital or health community to provide healthcare workers with cups during this time? Would you mind sharing some further details about this if so.

I look forward to speaking with you again soon and learning more about your project."

(The rep from Lena and I had a pretty good conversation and I think I liked this response the best.)

 

Oi told me they couldn't help.

Intimina sent me an auto-response.

Monki and Lunette said they'd take it into consideration

MeLuna responded, letting me know that they're a distributor, not a producer, and that they do donate their products. I was directed to their website for details on that.

 

These seven have not yet sent any response:

Eva

Enna Cycle

Mooncup

Kind Organic

Dot

Super Jennie

Lunette

 

If you're not using a cup yourself, I highly recommend them. They take some getting used to, but there are plentiful guides online to help you out. It's a great alternative to throwing out a trashcan full of products each month and much cleaner too. If you're interested in starting a campaign, work with a hospital in need, or want to contact these companies yourself to encourage their donations, please comment below and I'll share info on those topics with you.

Here's my article, Call for Cups in Coronavirus Crisis - https://www.writespike.com/story/oLseV7p326j8/call-for-cups-in-coronavirus-crisis/

 

**Image from GovernmentZA via Flickr https://www.flickr.com/photos/governmentza/

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