Sustain Natural has launched a new line of organic period products via an online subscription service where women can customize their own period kits, conveniently delivered bi-monthly.

Sustain Natural’s Period Products include:

• Organic Cotton Tampons - made with 100% organic cotton with a compact bio-plastic, plant-based and biodegradable applicator (most plastic applicators are not biodegradable and create massive amounts of waste). The absorbent core and protective outer layer is made with organic cotton fibers that are ideal for sensitive skin. Available in sizes ‘super’ or ‘regular’.
• Cotton Ultra Thin Pads with Wings - made with 100% cotton with protective wings for a secure fit. Hypoallergenic and breathable, the pads are available in ‘day’ and ‘night’ absorbencies.
• Cotton Ultra Thin Liners - made with 100% cotton, the liners are hypoallergenic and breathable, and have a full liner adhesive to guarantee no loose edges.

To celebrate its launch, Sustain is joining forces with Period Equity to rally behind the nationwide movement to remove taxes on tampons and pads which have been deemed ‘nonessential’ items. While menstruation is a normal and healthy part of women’s lives, in 37 states across the U.S., tampons, sanitary napkins and other menstrual hygiene products are subject to sales tax, upwards of 66 cents per box, while shockingly, products such as Rogaine, men’s razors and even Fruit Roll-Ups are frequently sales-tax free.

“It’s about equity and access – there’s no other tax that’s this gender biased,” says Meika Hollender, co-founder and co-CEO of Sustain Natural. “Tampons are critical to women’s overall health and wellness. To tax these items and not acknowledge or exempt them as essential products is another example of gender inequality playing out in policy. Overseeing women’s needs, and in turn putting women’s health at risk, is unacceptable.”

Founded in 2014 by Jeffrey Hollender, the co-founder and former CEO of Seventh Generation, and his daughter Meika, Sustain’s expansion into organic menstrual hygiene is a natural next-step for their brand, a product category Jeffrey and his wife Sheila Hollender tackled 15 years ago when they launched organic tampons and pads at Seventh Generation. This debut adds to the brand’s existing line of non-toxic sexual wellness products – because all women deserve to know what they’re putting inside their vaginas. Its new 100% organic cotton tampons, pads and liners are rayon- and fragrance-free, non-chlorine bleached, and grown without pesticides – and can be ordered at sustainnatural.com.

With Sustain’s online subscription model, women will now be able to customize their own period kits based on their personal menstrual needs. Many women use a combination of products during their menstrual cycle — different types of pads, tampons or both — and so Sustain has built an online Mad Lib style ‘Period Flow-Chart’, where women can indicate which combination of products they use and for how many days, to configure personalized boxes delivered every other month.

For the first 30 days of the launch, Sustain will match the dollars it collects in sales tax on these products with a donation to the organization Girls Helping Girls. Period. (GHGP) which helps low-income women in this country access menstrual hygiene products. GHGP is dedicated to educating people about this need, particularly among girls and women who may miss school and work because they can’t afford basic necessities like tampons and pads, compromising their health, productivity and dignity.