Tide® Survey Finds That 65 Percent of Hispanic Consumers Have Discarded Garments Ruined by Bleach or Home Remedies up to Five Times a Year

25 Feb 2013, 04:02 AM EST

According to a new survey¹ released by Tide®, effective stain removal without damaging fabrics is a top concern for consumers when doing laundry, especially when it comes to white garments.

Moreover, using conventional treatments like chlorine bleach or home remedies do not offer the expected results: Hispanic consumers who use bleach for their whites have experienced their garments turning yellow and dingy (32 percent), while 80 percent of those surveyed felt that home remedies (like vinegar, lemon and salt and dish soap) work only on some stains.

The toughest stain to take out? It is food, as per 56 percent of Hispanic consumers surveyed, followed by dirt (21 percent). Make-up stains came in third place, with 13 percent. Interestingly, when it comes to breaking the rules of wearing white, eating greasy or messy food is the most common activity that people do while wearing white garments, followed by putting on make-up.

Laundry can be a complex process, as consumers not only look to getting their garments clean but also need to address concerns like stain removal and ensuring their fabrics stay looking new for as long as possible, said Raquel Rozas, P&G Brand Manager for Tide

Understanding what consumers need is at the core of our research and development process to create products and solutions that make the laundry regimen easy and effective, like Tide Vivid White + Bright and Boost which help remove stains without the damage that chlorine bleach or other treatments can have, while keeping whites looking like new, wash after wash, added Rozas.

Other survey findings show that, when it comes to caring for their white garments, a majority of consumers (68 percent of Hispanics and 63 percent of non-Hispanics) want a detergent that both whitens and brightens and leave fabrics looking like new.

Tide Vivid White + Bright and Boost are designed to give your laundry that extra boost for the peskiest of stains, and they are safe to use on colors because they dont contain any chlorine or chlorine-containing bleaching agents.

Here are some stain removal tips from the Tide® fabric care experts:

The best defense in removing stains is to treat immediately. Make sure you blot up liquid spills or scrape off solid buildup with the edge of a dull knife. Work from the outer edge to center of the stain and don’t rub.
Always check the care label first and pretest stain removal product, and make sure to rinse and inspect the washed (or treated) garment before drying.
When it comes to protein-based stains (like blood, dirt or baby food), it is best not to use hot water to soak or wash items, as the heat may set the stains.
With oil-based stain, it is the opposite: pretreat with detergent (make sure to work the detergent into the stain and let it set for 10 15 minutes), then wash the garment in the hottest water safe setting.

For more laundry care and stain removal tips and solutions, visit the Tide website and also follow Tide on Facebook.

About Tide

For over 60 years, Tide® has been caring for the clothes of American families and helping to provide the everyday miracle of clean clothing. To meet consumers’ diverse laundry needs, Tide offers its cleaning in a variety of products including Tide Pods, Tide Total Care, Tide with Febreze Freshness, Tide Coldwater, Tide with a Touch of Downy, Tide VIVID White + Bright, Tide Boost, Tide High Efficiency and 2X Ultra Tide Liquid. For consumers’ on-the-go stain removal needs, Tide to Go helps remove fresh food and drink stains on the spot. Visit www.tide.com for helpful product information, practical tips on laundry care, special offers and promotions and more. You can become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Tide.

About Procter & Gamble

P&G serves approximately 4.6 billion people around the world with its brands. The Company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Fairy®, Gain®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun®, Fusion®, Ace®, Febreze®, Ambi Pur®, SK-II®, and Vicks®. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 75 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

The survey, commissioned by Procter & Gamble, was conducted by Research Now (http://www.researchnow.com/en-US.aspx) as an online survey among 1,000 nationally representative adults, ages 18 and older in the U.S. between November 29 and December 3, 2012.