Fragrance industry scents trouble from EU substance reclassification
15 Apr 2023
European Union changes to chemicals legislation are a potential threat to the substantial fragrance industry, says the sector’s leading trade association.
The International Fragrance Association (IFRA) is lobbying for a rethink on reforms to the Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) of substances and mixtures.
The European Commission is revising the EU chemicals legislation in accordance with its new Green Deal which will impact the rules for so-called Natural Complex Substances (NCS).This will involve a move towards classification by groups of substances, in preference to classification by individual substances which can each contain hundreds of different constituents.
Changes to the regulation on the Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) of substances and mixtures in addition to REACH Regulation will affect the fragrance value chain, IFRA insists.
Chair of its NCS committee and Managing Director, Product Safety – Regulatory Affairs at Robertet Group Catherine Gadras warned that the Commission’s t approach would change the classification system for NCS, with consequences for the wider industry.
“NCS are not intentional mixtures but substances. Therefore, where robust test data is available on an NCS as a whole, the classification of the NCS should be based on these data and not only on that from individual constituents,” she stated.
She added that any move in favour group classification of substances would demand clear methodology with “robust, appropriate and transparent” criteria.
“These changes under CLP and the knock-on effects for related legislation, such as REACH or the EU Cosmetic Products Regulation, put at risk the entire fragrance value chain”, added Mrs Gadras.
IFRA President Martina Bianchini said that while promotion of safe and sustainable use of fragrances was vital, consumer enjoyment of scented products depends on the ability “to use these products with confidence”.
Photo: Fulvio Ciccolo
