EU FRAGRANCE ALLERGENS

The vast majority of fragrance materials are safe for consumers to use. However, as with so many things in our world, there are a small number that may not be suited for all consumers. Some people have allergies which is an immune response when exposed to a material. Other people that have not developed an allergy will have no response. Governmental Regulatory Bodies and IFRA closely monitor developments in the marketplace and scientific research to identify if a fragrance material should either be completely avoided or used below specific levels that would reduce the probability of allergies developing.

Cosmetic regulations require companies to disclose all ingredients within their personal care products on the package label. However, the fragrance is to be labeled as “fragrance” or “parfum.” The regulations in the EU take a further step to require manufacturers to also include 26 specific fragrance raw materials (the “26 EU allergens”) in the ingredient statement if present at or above 0.001% for leave-on products and 0.01% for rinse-off products (EU Cosmetics Regulation [No 1223/2009] Annex III). While not required outside the EU, we have chosen to follow this practice on all our personal care product packaging.

Household regulations have been developed that utilize the EU Fragrance Allergens for cosmetics as the basis for ingredient disclosure on household care products. In the US, if any of these materials are present at or above 0.01%, their identity must be disclosed.

Please reference the “EU Fragrance Allergens List” for a complete listing of these materials.