PR: Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild Supports Cropwatch Boycott of IFRA's 40th Amendment

[Guest guest]

Posted below is the press release. There is also a very detailed FAQ,

linked at the end of the PR. If anyone would like copies to

distribute to their local media, they can be downloaded from that

link. We'd like to invite any industry representatives that are

interested in moving forward with this effort to contact me. The

contact address for this is at the end of this PR. Thanks for all the

support everyone has shown so far, and thanks to the team that helped

put this together, I was but a little cog in the wheel, happy to

contribute what I could. Anya

 

-Boycott Called to Halt Adoption of International Fragrance

Association's (IFRA) 40th Amendment by UK-based Watchdog Organization

Cropwatch Gains Momentum with Online Poll and Petition. Poll by

Perfumer and Flavorist newsletter P & Fnow shows a landslide for

Cropwatch with 85.1% of the vote.

 

-USA- based Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild joins in effort to Demand

Opening the Process Up for Public Input and Review of the Process

before thousands of small perfumery and toiletry businesses are

adversely affected by restrictive, unfair compliance standards.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MIAMI SHORES, Fla./February 8, 2007. On

February 7, 2007, fragrance and flavor trade magazine Perfumer &

Flavorist released the results of an online poll showing 85.1% of

readers in favor of boycotting proposed fragrance industry guidelines

that will heavily limit the use of natural essential oils in perfumes

and cosmetics.

Compliance with these guidelines (the IFRA 40th Amendment) requires

that listed essential oils and naturally occurring constituents be

kept to certain minimal levels in consumer products. At the core of

the Amendment are safety issues in regard to skin reactions. The ANPG

and Cropwatch fully support sensible safety guidelines to protect the

consumer, but do not believe IFRA has proved that many of the

essential oils affected present the supposed risk, nor have they

allowed input from the impacted concerns, especially small businesses.

 

Although IFRA guidelines are only mandatory for their members, they

have become the industry norm globally. Consequently, the livelihood

of many small businesses is being threatened by an organization that

does not represent them. Adhering to the complex measures not only

requires sophisticated computer software, which most small natural

products businesses do not possess, it also unfairly targets natural

ingredients. Without a level playing field, these small businesses

cannot be expected to compete. Approximately 200 essential oils will

be controlled by IFRA if their 40th amendment is ratified.

 

Previous IFRA guidelines have been responsible for the reformulation

of many classic perfumes, essentially destroying works of art that

existed in liquid form. It is asserted that perhaps a warning label

would have sufficed in allowing the original perfume, scent intact,

to remain on shelves. Just as demand for natural toiletries and

fragrances is growing worldwide, the 40th Amendment could do damage

from the level of growers, distillers, up to suppliers and

manufacturers. The end result may be the destruction of businesses

and the absence of genuine naturally scented shampoos, creams,

lotions, perfumes and soaps from store shelves.

 

To illustrate how the existing and proposed regulations from IFRA do

not make sense, ANPG President Anya McCoy recently blogged on Peanuts

vs. Perfume. Peanuts can kill susceptible people, yet their sales are

unrestricted: Some perfumes may cause a rash, yet the International

Fragrance Association's (IFRA) 40th Amendment wants to severely limit

the public's access to them. Consumers are allowed to make informed

decisions about peanut products, yet with IFRA and EU (see the

related FAQ) guidelines and regulations in place, consumers will no

longer have the freedom to make informed decisions about which

scented products they wish to use. Access to aromatherapy essential

oils may also be limited.

The ANPG believes the amendment may be unreasonable because the

measures are based on questionable scientific premises, and they are

decided behind closed doors without any possibility of public

discussion or debate. Since the call for a boycott was proposed two

weeks ago by little-guy Cropwatch, 549 people have signed an online

petition, backing the challenge to the Goliath IFRA.

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/ifra40/signatures.html

 

Therefore, the ANPG joins Cropwatch in asking for a moratorium on the

IFRA 40th amendment, until these issues have been fully addressed. We

ask that a review of the scientific methodologies that were used in

the original determinations of skin sensitization be examined, that

the compliance requirements be reviewed, and that warning labels on

products be considered in place of prohibition or restriction. Guild

Founder, noted natural perfumer and author Mandy Aftel, and Guild

President, perfumer Anya McCoy will be working with others in the

industry to challenge the IFRA stance and open the amendment adoption

process to the public.

 

For more information, you may download a detailed FAQ from:

<http://artisannaturalperfumers.org/cropwatch_ifra.htm>http://artisannaturalperf\

umers.org/cropwatch_ifra.htm

 

CONTACT:

Anya McCoy, President

Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild

P.O. Box 245

Miami Shores, FL 33153

PHONE. 305-756-0065

Website: http://artisannaturalperfumers.org

 

email: http://artisannaturalperfumers.org/contact.htm

 

KEYWORDS: International Fragrance Association, IFRA, 40th Amendment,

boycott, Cropwatch, Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild, perfume,

fragrance, natural, essential oils, toiletries, consumer, Mandy

Aftel, Anya McCoy

 

SOURCE: Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild

 

 

Anya McCoy

of Natural Perfume http://anyasgarden.com

Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild http://artisannaturalperfumers.org

Natural Perfumers Community Group

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

>

> AromaResearch

> [AromaResearch ] On Behalf Of Anya

> Thursday, February 08, 2007 8:40 PM

> NaturalPerfumery

> Cc: artisan_Natural_Perfumers_Guild ;

> ; atFE ;

> aromaResearch

> [AromaResearch] PR: Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild

> Supports Cropwatch Boycott of IFRA's 40th Amendment

>

> Posted below is the press release. There is also a very

> detailed FAQ, <snipped>

 

Aromaconnection has a new blog today continuing the coverage of this issue

and links.

 

Thanks to Anya, Tony and all involved for a job well done.

 

Marcia Elston http://www.aromaconnection.org