SOMERSET Tesco stores have teamed up with leading suppliers to tackle hygiene poverty.

Tesco has again joined forces with its suppliers of well-known household brands such as Radox, Sure, Bodyform and Aquafresh to help distribute millions of personal care items to people who are in need.

For every two purchases by Somerset Tesco Superstore customers from a selection of essential hygiene products, its suppliers will donate a third hygiene item directly to the charity In Kind Direct.

Participating in the campaign are Unilever, Essity, Haleon and Kimberly-Clark, and they are joined by a new partner, Edgewell.

These products will be distributed by In Kind Direct, which works with charities, community groups, foodbanks and schools to get much-needed hygiene products into the hands of people who need them.

Recent research commissioned by Essity, in partnership with Tesco and In Kind Direct, has illustrated how Somerset people are currently experiencing hygiene poverty.

Families are often impacted, and this survey revealed that 21% of households with dependents in the region have gone without hygiene products such as shampoo or deodorant.

The survey also found that those people across the region who have struggled to buy hygiene products during the last year have had to borrow from friends or family (29%) or used free products in public areas (29%).

Rosanne Gray, CEO at In Kind Direct, said: “Many people experiencing hygiene poverty face the impossible decision to heat, eat or keep clean on a daily basis.”

The campaign is running in Somerset Tesco Superstores until 11 June.