Countdown helps reduce period poverty

Lower prices on sanitary products aims to help reduce period poverty

Countdown has dropped the price of their Homebrand and Select women's sanitary items so they're cheaper to buy. As our website includes some of these products,  they're also cheaper for you to donate to Kiwi women in need in your community!

See the range of Countdown's Homebrand and Select women's products on our site and consider setting up a monthly recurring donation to support women who can't afford to buy them each month.

Official Release

Countdown has dropped the price of its Homebrand and Select sanitary products to make them more affordable for women and girls in New Zealand.

Speaking at a Parliamentary event on the issue in July 2018, Countdown’s General Manager Corporate Affairs, Kiri Hannifin said that while all women will benefit from lower prices on these essential items, making sanitary products more affordable seeks to address a real need for many women and girls in New Zealand.

"Period poverty has been talked about in other parts of the world but we know this is now a reality here. Many women go without sanitary products themselves, so they can provide essentials like food and rent for their family, or for others it's simply something they can’t stretch their budgets to afford for their children.

"Sanitary products are a necessity for all Kiwi women, no matter who you are or where you come from. This is something we felt we wanted to help address by making good quality products more affordable for all women," says Kiri Hannifin.

MP for Manurewa, Louisa Wall, says girls as young as 10 have resorted to makeshift measures such as filling socks with newspaper or using torn sheets as sanitary protection, risking infection, and not attending school or work because they feel embarrassed.

"Period poverty limits opportunities for current and future generations of Kiwi women, and the impact is much greater than missing a few days of school or work every month," says Louisa Wall.

"Female sanitary products aren't a luxury but for Kiwi women on tight budgets or low incomes, they're an expense that is simply out of reach. We've all got to work together to address this issue and make it easier to ask for help."

The Salvation Army's National Secretary for Social Services, Major Pam Waugh says we need to start talking about how we can better address this issue here in New Zealand.

"We know that poverty of all kinds can follow people throughout their lifetime. It's essential women who are making every effort to support themselves and their families are not held back because they can't fit sanitary products in their budget.  Sanitary products are essential items for women, not a luxury item for the privileged," says Major Waugh.

In July 2016, Countdown, The Salvation Army and MP for Manurewa, Louisa Wall, launched an initiative via The Foodbank Project to help stock the charity's foodbanks with sanitary products. Since then, more than $175,000 of tampons and sanitary pads have been donated.

Countdown's move to lower the price of Homebrand and Select tampons and pads is expected to save customers $750,000 a year.