As the cost of living crisis continues, it’s reported that one in eight people who menstruate say it is likely that they will be unable to afford period products this year, according to a study by YouGov.
As a result, many are turning to hygiene banks, charities and in some cases, discreet supermarket schemes in a bid to tide them over during their monthly cycle. Last year, we tescted the Morrisons ‘package for Sandy’ scheme, which sees shoppers ask a customer service employee for the discreet codeword in exchange for an emergency sanitary towel or two.
Last week, Tesco appeared to confirm a similar initiative in their stores - but when Manchester Evening News went to see if it really works, our reporter Bethan Shufflebotham was left feeling a little disappointed and embarrassed.
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The scheme was spotted on social media over the last few weeks, chiefly, a photograph apparently taken from a Tesco toilet cubicle of a poster which read: “To combat period poverty, Tesco want to ensure everyone has access to sanitary products. If you are in need, please go to the customer service desk and ask for a white envelope. No questions will be asked."
Twitter user Niall Love tweeted the supermarket giant for confirmation, writing: “@Tesco is this true about asking for a "White envelope" For Sanitary products?”
To which Tesco’s official and verified account replied: “Hi Naill, thanks for getting in touch. To answer your question, yes this is correct, all a customer needs to do is to ask at our customer services and there will be no questions asked, it's in a effort to tackle period poverty as they are given free of charge. TY - Ian”
After spotting the tweet, I decided to head to three different Tesco stores to see if the initiative really works - however, not all went as I had hoped, and Tesco have now confirmed why.
Heading into one Tesco, I arrived at the customer service desk and asked if it would be possible to get a ‘white envelope’. The customer assistant went to have a little look in a cupboard, but apologised and said they’d ‘run out’. Now, I can’t be certain if she means run out of the emergency period products, or actual white envelopes, because as well-meaning as this scheme may be, the code word is, in my opinion, slightly flawed, as I would come to discover at Tesco number two.
“Hi, I was wondering, do you have a white envelope please?” the other problem being is that you can’t help but deliver the question with a bit of a wink and a nod to signal it is in fact the code word white envelope, and not the item of stationery.
But in store number two, the lady behind the till replied: “Just a plain white envelope? We haven't got any plain white ones without getting them off the shop floor.”
I explained I’d seen that Tesco were running a scheme where you can ask for a ‘white envelope’, but this particular member of staff hadn’t heard of it, through social media or otherwise.
I held out a small amount of hope that Tesco store number three would see some success, but once again the member of staff headed into the stockroom and returned empty handed with a ‘sorry, we’re out!’.
I do feel that the employees in stores one and three had an idea of what I was talking about, but in the second store the scheme had been unheard of.
I left feeling rather disappointed that I left all three stores empty-handed, not even an actual white envelope, but thankful that I wasn’t in genuine need of a sanitary towel at the time, since I was wearing cream leggings, too. It did upset me though that someone may have seen the social media posts and Tesco’s tweet and mustered the courage to ask for a ‘white envelope’, but come away feeling embarrassed and somewhat disheartened.
However, Tesco have since clarified that the original ‘white envelope’ scheme was a ‘small-scale trial’ that has since ended, which is why those looking to access the free help may not find it in their local branch.
A Tesco spokesperson said: “We’re really sorry for any confusion caused by the White Envelope initiative. This was a small-scale trial we ran in a handful of stores to help people in their local community. Now the trial has ended, we’ll use what we've learned to help us serve our customers better.
“We know the cost of period products is a real struggle for many and continue to work with our suppliers to make sure they are affordable for all."
While this particular experience wasn’t ideal, Tesco say they’ve long made it their ‘mission’ to give easy access to affordable sanitary products. For example, in 2017, they became the first UK supermarket to remove VAT on period products.
Meanwhile, Tesco colleagues can buy Tesco own brand period products at half price and they are provided with free period products in colleague toilets.
While I didn’t have as much success with Tesco’s white envelope as I did with Morrisons’ package for Sandy, I’m pleased to see people talking more about period poverty in general, raising awareness of the cost of menstruating, and highlighting where people can access help in a safe, discreet way.
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