BY MISTY MILIOTO
Susie Hewson is a woman of the past because of her serious concern for both the planet and the health of women. When she founded Natracare in 1989, it was the first company in the world that sold period products made of natural and plastic. Hewson has expanded her offerings today and continues to advocate for women’s health and economic responsibility.
At the time she started the company, Hewson was now worried about carcinogenic residuals from the pulp production industry, its devastating impact on nature, and its presence in disposables, such as period products, baby diapers, coffee filters, and toilet paper. But, after watching a television program called World in Action, her concern turned to dedication one evening.
The episode “exposed the sources of ( and the impact of a lack of regulation controls on the use of ] chlorine bleaching chemicals and international exposure to harmful dioxin residuals,” she says. ” Anger was my immediate response. I presently made the decision at 1 a.m. to design and produce period goods free of synthetics and chlorine in order to demonstrate that it was possible to make functional products more deliberately and safely for both the environment and human health. Natracare was created, and the campaign of attrition began”.
First, Hewson began by selling three maxi pads and one mini panty liner. When she received FDA 510K clearance in March 1991, she was able to launch Natracare 100 % cotton non-applicator tampons. Therefore, in 1993, she launched a 100 % cotton tampon with a cardboard applicator to better suit the U. S. market. The company started using nonwoven, 100 % organic cotton in the middle of the 1990s after the company had always used Totally Chlorine Free (TCF ) cellulose from wood pulp. Around the same time, Natracare’s 100 % cotton tampons were also certified organic.
” However, my campaign of education and calling for better regulations was ongoing”, she says. ” It wasn’t until early 1996 that I was able to design a website as soon as the internet was available. Over the]past ] three decades, I have designed ultra thin pads and wrapped options, all using plant-based, sustainably sourced raw materials”.
Hewson spent several years looking for the best organic materials that wouldn’t compromise quality while protecting women’s health. She wanted to use just materials that are ethical, environmentally conscious, kind to hypersensitive skin, and free from chemicals of concern, pesticide residues, and allergens.
” I have been an environmentalist my entire adult life, and the reason] I created ] Natracare was to address the common use of toxic chemicals of concern, synthetics, micro plastics, and single plastic films”, she says. ” I continue to fight for truth and transparency in labeling so that consumers can make informed choices.”
Hewson’s commitment to producing products that were absolutely chlorinated was a crucial factor. “TCF processes use just hydrogen peroxide, a mild chemical that breaks down into hydrogen and water”, Hewson says. ” Products that claim]to be ] chlorine-free (ECF ) are still using chlorine dioxide. When compared to the chlorine gas used a decade ago for bleaching, it only reduces the toxic dioxin emissions as a process by 40 %.
By avoiding raw materials and processes that involve chemicals of concern, PFAs, fluorines, and toxic heavy metals, Natracare is protecting women’s bodies from unnecessary and unproven byproducts. Hewson says,” We carry out cautious testing to make sure Natracare products are verified for the claims we make on our packs.” ” The lowest impact on the skin can be found in organic cotton, a tried-and-true fiber. We do not use fragrances, very absorbents, synthetics, or dyes”. In the course of her research, Natracare tampons are made of 100 % organic cotton that has been certified to the Global Organics Textile Standard, the gold standard for organic processing.
