Data Generation for Perfume Ingredient Safety Evaluation

Summary

There is minimal legislation referring to perfumes as such, but regulations concerning chemicals in general and cosmetics and toiletries in particular contain many items which may be referable to perfumes. In addition, the fragrance industry has established a system of industry self-regulation. This is based on the International Fragrance Association (IFRA), an association of national associations, whose Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) issues a Code of Practice for the industry and Industry Guidelines on ingredient usage.

IFRA relies on data provided by industry and other sources, especially the Research Institute for Fragrance Materials Inc. (RIFM), which carries out research on fragrance ingredients for the sole purpose of establishing fragrance safety. The work of IFRA and RIFM is detailed and co-ordinated through a Joint Advisory Committee (JAC). We describe here the workings of these groups and consider the data banks available and future approaches to safety.