IFRA Code of Practice_

The IFRA Code of Prac­ti­ce is the fra­gran­ce industry’s com­mit­ment to ensu­ring best prac­ti­ce in our industry. It applies to all IFRA mem­bers worldwide.

Our Code covers the manu­fac­tu­re and hand­ling of all fra­gran­ce ingre­dients and mix­tu­res and all types of appli­ca­tions, in so far as the­se are cove­red by safety assess­ments con­duc­ted by the Research Ins­ti­tu­te for Fra­gran­ce Mate­rials (RIFM) and con­se­quently fall within sco­pe of the IFRA Standards.

Sco­pe and application

Adhe­ren­ce to the IFRA Code of Prac­ti­ce is man­da­tory for all com­pa­nies that are mem­bers of IFRA in one form or another.

The­se com­pa­nies inclu­de Regu­lar Mem­bers, Sup­por­ting Mem­bers and mem­bers of Natio­nal Associations.

The cri­te­ria for IFRA mem­bership can be found in the IFRA bylaws. (ADD HYPER­LINK TO IFRA BYLAWS)

Obli­ga­tions

The IFRA Code of Prac­ti­ce has three prin­ci­pal obli­ga­tions, set out in detail below:

Ensu­re safe use and regu­la­tory com­plian­ce: IFRA mem­bers must ensu­re that the fra­gran­ce ingre­dients and mix­tu­res they supply are safe for their inten­ded uses and comply with appli­ca­ble regu­la­tions and laws.

Apply the IFRA Stan­dards: IFRA mem­bers must apply the IFRA Stan­dards, which ban, res­trict or set purity cri­te­ria for the use of cer­tain fra­gran­ce ingre­dients, based on scien­ti­fic evidence.

Adhe­re to good ope­ra­ting prac­ti­ces: IFRA mem­bers shall follow good ope­ra­ting prac­ti­ces when pro­du­cing fra­gran­ce ingre­dients and mixtures.

Ensu­re safe use and regu­la­tory compliance

Fra­gran­ce ingre­dients and mix­tu­res are sub­ject to laws and regu­la­tions adop­ted by inter­na­tio­nal, regio­nal, natio­nal and local regu­la­tory authorities.

The­se laws and regu­la­tions may dif­fer depen­ding on the use of the ingre­dients or mix­tu­res, and on the loca­tion in which they are manu­fac­tu­red, for­mu­la­ted, used and marketed.

It is the res­pon­si­bi­lity of each IFRA mem­ber to ensu­re that the fra­gran­ce ingre­dients and mix­tu­res they supply comply with appli­ca­ble laws and are safe for their inten­ded uses.

Appli­ca­tion of the IFRA Standards

When warran­ted by con­cerns regar­ding the safe use of a spe­ci­fic ingre­dient, IFRA will issue an IFRA Stan­dard. IFRA Stan­dards can prohi­bit, res­trict or set purity requi­re­ments for spe­ci­fic ingre­dients. Not all fra­gran­ce ingre­dients are sub­ject to IFRA Standards.

The safety of ingre­dients, whether the sub­ject of an IFRA Stan­dard or not, remains the res­pon­si­bi­lity of IFRA members.

Appli­ca­tion of the IFRA Stan­dards is neces­sary for com­plian­ce with the IFRA Code of Prac­ti­ce but may not be suf­fi­cient to ensu­re regu­la­tory com­plian­ce and the safety of fra­gran­ce ingre­dients and mixtures.

It is the res­pon­si­bi­lity of indi­vi­dual com­pa­nies and their emplo­yees, with the sup­port of IFRA and its Natio­nal Asso­cia­tions, to deter­mi­ne how to apply the IFRA Stan­dards, in accor­dan­ce with laws, regu­la­tions and other requi­re­ments of the coun­tries in which they operate.

Deve­lop­ment of the IFRA Standards

Adop­tion: IFRA Stan­dards are pre­pa­red by IFRA and its Risk Mana­ge­ment Task For­ce on the basis of safety assess­ments pre­pa­red by the Research Ins­ti­tu­te for Fra­gran­ce Mate­rials (RIFM) and deci­sions made by an inde­pen­dent Expert Panel for Fra­gran­ce Safety.

Con­sul­ta­tion: The adop­tion of IFRA Stan­dards typi­cally inclu­des a three- to six-month con­sul­ta­tion of IFRA mem­bers, cus­to­mer asso­cia­tions and other sta­kehol­ders, such as regu­la­tors and non-govern­men­tal groups. If any safety infor­ma­tion is gene­ra­ted that might alter the Stan­dards, a new Expert Panel review and deci­sion is required.

Revi­sion: On a regu­lar basis, IFRA noti­fies new and amen­ded Stan­dards in wri­ting to IFRA mem­bers, cus­to­mer asso­cia­tions and other sta­kehol­ders, such as regu­la­tors and non-govern­men­tal groups. In cases whe­re the­re are imme­dia­te risks iden­ti­fied for human or envi­ron­men­tal health, a Stan­dard is com­mu­ni­ca­ted as soon as it is adop­ted. When IFRA mem­bers have evi­den­ce that warrants the issuan­ce or modi­fi­ca­tion of a Stan­dard, they are obli­ged to inform IFRA.

Entry into for­ce: Each Amend­ment clearly spe­ci­fies when it comes into for­ce for new and exis­ting crea­tions. The­se time­li­nes may depend on the size, sco­pe and urgency of an Amendment.

Com­mu­ni­ca­tion: IFRA Stan­dards and rela­ted docu­ments are sub­ject to regu­lar upda­tes as new infor­ma­tion on the safety of fra­gran­ce ingre­dients beco­mes avai­la­ble. The latest ver­sion of the Stan­dards is avai­la­ble on the IFRA website.

Com­plian­ce: IFRA mem­bers must comply with IFRA Stan­dards. An IFRA mem­ber is dee­med to be in breach of this Code when it sup­plies a pro­duct that is in vio­la­tion of IFRA Standards.

How do we set the IFRA Standards?

What is the role of the inde­pen­dent Expert Panel?

IFRA Stan­dards and other recom­men­da­tions are deve­lo­ped in good faith and are based on the most recent scien­ti­fic opi­nions and collec­ti­ve expe­rien­ces of various com­mit­tees and wor­king groups within and outsi­de IFRA.

Com­pa­nies remain res­pon­si­ble for the pro­ducts they pla­ce on the mar­ket; IFRA is not lia­ble for any action taken in applying the IFRA Standards.

Adhe­ren­ce to good ope­ra­ting practices

IFRA mem­bers shall follow good ope­ra­ting prac­ti­ces when pro­du­cing fra­gran­ce ingre­dients and mix­tu­res. (ADD HYPER­LINK TO THE IFRA RECOM­MEN­DA­TION FOR GOOD OPE­RA­TIONG PRACTICES)