Startup, Nyungu Afrika, Creates Sanitary Pads from Pineapple Waste

According to fsg, 65% of women and girls in the world do not have access to sanitary pads. This statistic is made even more poignant considering the fact that virtually every woman and girl at puberty are in need of these products once menstruation starts. This lack of access to sanitary pads and products is called period poverty. On another spectrum also, sanitary wastes amount to 20% of the waste in landfills. Also, during production, UNEP estimates that about 15 million tonnes of gases are emitted and 35 million barrels of oil were consumed. The lack of sanitary products and its mode of disposal are all global problems that require empathy, innovation, and skill to resolve. Here is where Nyungu Afrika comes into the frame. The product, a brainchild of Kenyan- Mary Nyaruai- is simultaneously combating period poverty and pollution in the most innovative and sustainable way possible. Emerging as one of the winners of this year’s What Design Can Do’s No Waste Challenge, Nyungu Afrika is basically biodegradable sanitary pads made out of pineapple and maize tusks.

Growing up in the ‘home of Kenyan pineapples’- the scenic little town of Thika lies northeast of the bustling city of Nairobi, Kenya, Mary Nyaruai spent her childhood here. She was always conversant with the tropical plant and fruit that has come to form the basis of her invention. Instead of burning the waste products of these plants and further releasing deadly gases into the atmosphere, Mary Nyaruai’s patented products convert this waste into low-cost, high-quality, biodegradable sanitary pads. In fact, to further broaden the impact, Nyaruai creates an impact that spans the whole value chain- from production to consumption. All materials are locally sourced and the hands employed are also local people who are equally empowered to create positive change.

Speaking to what inspired this innovation, Nyaruai bemoans the lack of sanitary pads created specifically with the quality and ethics needed to address the needs of women and girls in her native Kenya and in Africa as a whole. Badly reputed when it comes to the production and sale of female hygiene products, Kenya has come under fire many times in the past. “As a menstruating woman, it was frustrating not to find products that understood my needs during my periods,” Nyaruai tells Design Indaba. Besides the inefficiency of the products in the market, Nyaruai had also come across brands who claim to create biodegradable sanitary products as a mere marketing strategy. According to her, this deceit discredits the hard work of brands that are really putting in the work to protect female health needs and the environment.

Despite the saddening nature of its commerce and the havoc it wreaks on the environment, what really spurred the former journalist Into action was period poverty. Via her stories and research, she learned that many young girls exchange sex for pads and that period stigma had pushed a 14-year-old girl to suicide. In response, she said; “I plunged my resources and time into research for two years and teamed up with a material scientist and textile engineer to create an affordable alternative that could deliver on comfort and absorption,”. This birthed Nyungu Afrika. 

This innovation has received critical acclaim and commendable support since its inception as it is changing the narrative on period poverty and access to affordable sanitary options for women and girls in Africa. Also, on creating sustainable design solutions using indigenous materials and methods in the continent, Nyungu Afrika speaks truth to power. This is part of Mary Nyaruai’s grander ambition to promote women’s hygiene and health in Africa and also the need for sustainable design across the globe.