Procter & Gamble Fund
/OVERVIEW: Procter & Gamble supports global development, disaster relief and higher education. Since 2020, it has also supported global and U.S.-based COVID-19 relief initiatives with grants and product donations.
IP TAKE: Procter & Gamble‘s philanthropy focuses on “leveraging the company’s core competencies to address critical social needs.” Giving consists of grants and product donations. P&G tends to partner with large nonprofits and NGOs that are able to distribute health and hygiene products in times of need.
Prospective grantees in the U.S. can apply for grants between July 1 and September 30 or December 1 and February 28 of each year. Areas near P&G manufacturing plants are prioritized.
PROFILE: Procter and Gamble, also known as P&G, is a global consumer goods corporation based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company owns over 70 name brands of products that are commonly used in households around the world, including Pampers, Olay, Crest, Ivory, Tide, Swiffer, Old Spice and Pepto-Bismol. This corporation’s philanthropy supports geographic areas around the world where it maintains operations, and much of its philanthropy consists of product donations and employee giving programs conducted through the company’s many individual brand names. P&G’s global grantmaking supports development, health and disaster relief. Its U.S. grantmaking program is run through the Greater Cincinnati Foundation. Recent U.S. funding has focused on COVID-19 and prioritized areas where P&G operates manufacturing plants.
Grants for Global Development
Procter & Gamble’s supports global development through its Children’s Safe Drinking Water Fund. Established in 2004, this signature project consists of donations of P&G’s water purifier packets to the nearly 1 billion people in the world who do not have access to drinkable water. P&G has partnered with “public, private and non-profit partners” in this endeavor and has so far delivered more than 17 billion liters of clean water to communities in Asia, Africa and Central and South America. P&G has also supported global operations Habitat for Humanity, including a project that oversaw the construction of a home for at-risk girls in rural Kenya.
Grants for Disaster Relief and Humanitarian Aid
The Procter and Gamble company has responded to several recent natural disasters with product donations and grants. In Australia, P&G partnered with Foodbank to distribute in-kind donations of detergent, shampoo, toothbrushes and toothpaste to people affected by the brushfires of 2019 and 2020. P&G’s Aussie hair product brand gave $100,000 to the World Wildlife Federation’s and WIRES Wildlife Rescue’s efforts to save and relocate endangered animals, and the Vick’s brand gave $20,000 to Direct Relief, an organization that distributed N95 masks. P&G also runs a signature program, the Tide Loads of Hope Fund, which is “a mobile laundry program that provides clean clothes to families affected by natural disasters.” This program has supported victims of hurricanes in the U.S.
Grants for Racial Justice and Indigenous Rights
P&G’s newest stated grantmaking program is Take on Race Fund, which represents a $5 million initial commitment to support “organizations fighting for justice, advancing economic opportunity, enabling greater access to education and health care and making our communities more equitable.” Funding has so far supported organizations including the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, YWCA Stand Against Racism and Courageous Conversation, which provides “coaching and consulting services for millions of racial equity leaders around the world.”
Grants for Global Health
Procter & Gamble began supporting global health initiatives in 2020. Most of its philanthropy in this area has focused on global COVID-19 relief efforts. In Europe, P&G has given over $25 million in product donations and grants to organizations including the International Red Cross and Red Crescent, France’s SOS Villages d’Enfants and Poland’s Association of Nurses and Midwives. Grantees in Asia include India’s PM Cares Fund, the Vietnamese Fatherland Front and the Wuhan Municipal Charity Foundation. In Africa P&G has supported COVID relief via UNICEF. Latin American grantees include World Vision and the United Way.
Grants for Public Health
P&G public health grantmaking in the U.S. consists mainly of COVID-19 response grantmaking and product donations. In June 2020, P&G’s Safeguard brand gave $10 million to Save the Children, Americares and Feeding America for hygiene education programs for children “under the age of 12 who were reentering playgrounds, parks, recreational facilities and schools in the U.S.” Other COVID-19 relief grants have gone to the United Way of Greater Cincinnati, Matthew 25: Ministries and Direct Relief.
Grants for Higher Education
P&G names higher education as an area of grantmaking interest but does not outline specific goals for its education funding. Past grantees include the University of Iowa, the University of Missouri, Vanderbilt University and John Brown University in Arkansas.
Important Grant Details
With much of its philanthropy conducted through product donations and grants made from P&G’s individual product lines, it is difficult to estimate how much this conglomerate gives away on a yearly basis. Its grantees tend to be large nonprofits and NGOs that benefit from grants and distribute the company’s product donations. For additional information about P&G’s philanthropy, see its annual Corporate Citizenship Report.
Procter & Gamble runs two annual grant cycles for nonprofits in the U.S. Applications are accepted between July 1 until September 30 for the first cycle and between December 1 and February 28 for the second cycle via its online application portal. General inquiries may be directed to P&G grantmaking program via email.
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