the better company was born from a desire to create a product that is better.
Better for you, better for the planet, and better for those in need.
Why bettercup?
Why bettercup?
better for you
better for your body.
bettercup is made from 100% medical grade silicone. It has absolutely no nasties.
No dyes, BPA, latex, bleach or plastic.
Just pure and simple.
Tampons, on the other hand, are made up of a mix of synthetic materials, cotton and plastics. Tampons work by absorbing your menstrual fluid which means they also absorb other essential bodily fluids as well, often leaving you feeling dry.
bettercup collects your menstrual fluid rather than absorbing it. Which means no dryness, and none of your natural bodily fluids are absorbed unnecessarily. You can even pop your bettercup in slightly early, for peace of mind when you know your period’s due, without causing your body any irritation. You can also leave it in right ‘til the last signs of your period, again without leaving you feeling dry or irritated.
bettercup is super soft, supple, kind to your body and easy-to-use. Using a bettercup is the equivalent of around three regular tampons and it can be left in safely for up to 12 hours. Check out our HOW TO for an easy step-by-step guide.
better for your purse.
Let’s say the average individual menstruates from 15 years old to 45 years old. That’s 12 periods a year for 30 years. So around 360 periods across your life. And, with approximately 20 tampons per period, not to mention sanitary pads and pantyliners, we can get through around 8000 disposable period products in our life. That’s a lot of trips to the supermarket; a lot of late night panics, realising your stash has run out. And, as we all know, a lot of expense when you’re forced, in desperation, to buy an overpriced box when nothing else is available.
On the other hand, one bettercup lasts you years and years! And, for a one-off price of £20, you need never be caught out again. Wahoo!
better for the planet.
So, we’ve already worked out that throughout your life you’ll get through thousands of tampons, all of which end up in landfill. If we were to think of the problem on a global scale, over 8000 disposed tampons per person, that’s a heck of a lot of sanitary waste sitting in landfill. Taking hundreds of years to decompose. And that’s just the tampons, not to mention the thousands of sanitary pads, pantyliners, packaging and applicator sticks.
One of the catalysts to launching the better company was discovering that there’s also lot of hidden plastic in tampon products. The wrapping is often plastic, applicator sticks aren’t recyclable (for sanitary reasons), the string of a tampon is usually glued rather than threaded and, in most regular brands, there is even plastic in the tampon itself. Plastic doesn’t biodegrade, it just breaks down into smaller parts and ends up in landfill via the bin, or our oceans via your toilet. In landfill it sits and releases harmful gases and chemicals, polluting the surrounding air and water.
better for others.
At the better company we believe, and we’re sure you’ll agree, that sanitary care is not a privilege but a basic human right.
People across our world are missing school and using unhygienic means to cope through their menstrual cycles. Our dream is to put a stop to an issue that -at its core- feels so simple. Half of the world’s population will have a period so why is menstruation not better funded and supported?
And that’s where you step in. For every bettercup sold we are able to give one to a person in need. Our first partnership is one particularly special to us, Hamara Hope School, a rural farm school in Zimbabwe. bettercup founder Ruth’s sister helped to start and now works at the school.
Hope School, Zimbabwe.
Hope School offers education to around 420 local children and teenagers in western Zimbabwe. Children in this community typically live in basic two room, brick or mud homes, many without electricity or running water. They survive on an average family income of $1 per day. This makes sanitary pads unaffordable for almost all of the girls who attend Hope School. Currently the school relies on donations of sanitary pads from well-wishers, as the girls previously had no other option than to use rags during their periods. However, since Zimbabwe is currently in one of the worst times of inflation in history, even these donated sanitary pads are becoming unaffordable.
The exciting opportunity with gifting bettercups to these students is that it is a long-term answer, rather than fleeting aid. No need for more sanitary pads donated month after month, that one bettercup will enable them to focus on their education for the rest of their schooling, rather than worry each month how they’ll get through their next period.
Why better pads?
Why better pads?
Why better pads? Why better pads?
Better for you
Disposable sanitary pads are made from a mix of synthetic fibres, cotton, adhesives and many other ingredients.
Better pads are made from super soft, 100% organic cotton. They are beautifully breathable on your skin and make for a much comfier -better- period experience.
The base layer of a better pad is made from 100% recycled polyester, the polyester is laminated- a process which makes it fully waterproof. This process can only be done on polyester, rather than organic cotton, and so we use 100% recycled polyester because we don’t want to introduce any more virgin polyester to our lovely planet.
Better for the planet
We only use a disposable sanitary pad once but it’s lifespan continues long after we’ve thrown it in our bin.
Sanitary pads take hundreds of years to decompose in landfill. As they decompose they release harmful chemicals and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
The process of creating sanitary pads is also planet-damaging.
The production of (non organic) cotton uses pesticides and other harmful chemicals which pollute surrounding wildlife and birdlife, as well as having a damaging impact on the farmers’ health.
BUT never fear! Better pads are here to save the planet.
Our better pads are made using organic cotton -and- you can use your better pads for YEARS!
They are reusable pads- you can use, wash and re use!
Once you are ready to dispose of your better pads you can pop them in your local fabric recycling bins!
Happy endings all round!
Better for others
Just like our original bettercup menstrual cup, we donate better pads for each one sold.
We are very excited to be able to finally have reusable period pads ready to donate, as we have received requests for them since our launch in 2020.
Many of our charity partners work with young girls and women who, for many reasons, aren’t able to use a menstrual cup and so we are thrilled to finally be able provide them reusable sanitary pads.
We are all different and it has always been a passion at the better company to provide people around the world with a better period, in whatever way works best for them.