The core materials of menstrual pants are undergoing a transformation from traditional petroleum-based materials to green degradable ones. Traditional products mainly rely on superabsorbent polymer (SAP) as the absorbent core, accounting for about 20-25% of the total content, and are combined with petroleum-based non-woven fabric for the surface layer and breathable film for the bottom layer to achieve leak-proof function. However, the proportion of non-degradable components in this material combination is as high as 65%, which takes hundreds of years to decompose in the natural environment. In response to this, Qianzhiya, a leading enterprise in the industry, introduced a high-end intelligent production line with an open-close structure in April this year. Through a patented three-dimensional molding system and AI visual inspection, it realizes high-precision processing of degradable materials, with the product qualification rate reaching 99.98%.
The application of new environmentally friendly materials has become the key to breaking the bottleneck. The degradable needle-punched cotton developed by Zhicheng Nonwovens uses natural plant raw materials such as wood pulp and bamboo fiber, and is formed through a physical needle-punching process. It can be completely degraded within 12 weeks under industrial composting conditions. This material has been gradually applied to the surface layer of menstrual pants. Although its cost is 20-30% higher than that of traditional non-woven fabrics, its repurchase rate on e-commerce platforms has reached 65%, indicating consumers’ recognition of environmentally friendly products. At the same time, the new national standard stipulates that hygiene products such as menstrual pants are prohibited from using recycled materials and migratory fluorescent brighteners, and the limits for heavy metal residues are further tightened to ensure material safety from the source.
The intelligent transformation of the production end is advancing simultaneously. Enterprises such as Qianzhiya have introduced IoT-based collaborative production modules, which can real-time monitor the temperature and humidity of raw materials, equipment operation parameters and finished product quality. Combined with the microbial index testing required by the new national standard (total bacterial colony count ≤ 100 CFU/g), full-life-cycle quality control of products is realized. Data from Shanghai Customs shows that after the implementation of the new regulation, the qualification rate of spot checks on imported period pants has increased to 99.6%, 1.2 percentage points higher than that during the implementation period of the old standard.
The consumer market presents dual demands for functionality and environmental protection. On the one hand, menstrual pants adopting 3D molding technology have seen an annual increase of 15% in penetration rate among young consumer groups due to their better fit and leak-proof performance. On the other hand, the market size of products made from degradable materials is expected to exceed 24 billion US dollars by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate of 12.4%. It is worth noting that although the cost of traditional materials such as SAP is only 1/8 of that of new degradable materials, innovative products such as liquid sanitary pads are gradually gaining favor among consumers with strong environmental awareness due to their 40% carbon footprint advantage.
Insiders in the industry stated that with the implementation of the new national standard and technological progress, the menstrual pants industry is moving towards an all-dimensional upgrade of "safety + comfort + environmental protection". Material enterprises need to maintain absorption performance while overcoming cost challenges, so that green products can benefit more consumers and promote the industry to achieve true sustainable development.
