Liability Insurance for the Bath and Beauty Microbusiness Community

I am posting this ad for Stratus Insurance. I was in negotiations with them for both the Guild and the this group and the natural perfumery community at large.

They're offering great rates to the Guild, and some folks might want to join to save over non-Guild rates  ;-) 

BTW, if you have a business that is not 100% natural perfumery, you can still join in the Stratus deal. I did negotiate on behalf of the NP community, but I realize many here may use fragrance oils or aromachemicals. You can still get this insurance.

Just make sure you use this page to apply:http://www.stratusins.info/perfumers_app.php

At the bottom of the page, if you're not a member of the Guild, check off if you are a member of the Yahoo NP group. I will work with Natasaha Gray to confirm Guild members at this time, since we've had about a dozen new members in the past week and they're not listed on the website yet. In the future, the Guild will have a separate application page. 

Also, for the non-Guild and non-NP group members, they're going to reword this to be more inclusive in the future, perhaps "Found via a link from Anya's Garden."

Coverage:
For Guild members $1/M/$475
non-Guild: $1M/$525

Limits are as follows:

$1,000,000 General Aggregate Limit
$1,000,000 Products-Completed Operations Aggregate Limit
$1,000,000 Personal and Advertising Injury Limit
$1,000,000 Each Occurrence Limit
$100,000 Fire Damage Limit
$5,000 Medical Payments

For additional $55 they can increase Aggregate and Products to $2,000,000 at any time during the policy.

All my best,
Anya
http://AnyasGarden.com
http://NaturalPerfumers.com
Anya's Garden on FB http://bit.ly/iamja
Guild on FB http://bit.ly/1jP5lB

Transcript of Tony Burfield's Presentation on "Is Excessive Regulation Destroying the Perfumery Art?"

Below please find the transcript of the Powerpoint presentation Natural Perfumers Guild Associate Tony Burfield of Cropwatch gave to the British Society of Perfumers March, 2010.

Tony Burfield was the only presenter at the Safety and Regulatory symposium who did not offer ways for the perfumers to comply EFFA, SCCNFP, REACH et al. Instead, he presented fact after scientific fact as to why much of the compliance requirements are based on bad science and political maneuverings, coupled with a dose of market manipulation.

The Natural Perfumers Guild is proud to have Tony as a member and we hope that those reading this will help spread the information presented here. So goes REACH, so go your beloved perfumes.

Tony Burfield's Cropwatch is:

• A loosely based, non-financed, independent watch-dog to the aroma & natural products trade. In existence approx 6-7 years.
• Best known for its pro-active campaigning activities on natural aromatics, data-bases on threatened aromatic species & bio-piracy, long-term opposition to the 26 allergens legislation, & to the QRA (which the SCCP has also criticised in SCCP/1153/08).
• No formal membership; produces an occasional Cropwatch Newsletter which reaches some 40,000 people.
• Provides free information on natural aromatics on its website www.cropwatch.org and free advice to enquirers.

Part I – Perceived Problems with Fragrance Safety Legislation & Safety ‘Experts’.

Safety Issues in the Aroma Business.

• Fragrance customers usually insist on adherence to all existing H&S guidelines (both official & voluntary) because of the prevailing fear-culture, and possible media exposure regarding potential adverse effects to end-users from single ‘hazardous’ fragrance ingredients.
• EU Regulators have no capability of gauging the socio-economic effects of their policies. Banning or restricting natural aromatic materials often has severe economic consequences for natural aromatic producers and dependent communities in developing countries. Disastrous EU legislation is (sometimes) followed by an impact assessment and (then possibly) corrective action – but by then its often too late to save any affected SME’s (e.g. the effect of the BPD on Europe’s natural biocidal product manufacturers).
• Knowledgeable whistle-blowers revealing questionable trade practices are shunned by the trade (for example, as detailed in the letters of the late Stephan Arctander).
• So many SME’s (candle-makers / soap-makers/ incense traders / pot pourri makers / hand-made cosmetics makers / general cleaning product makers / natural perfumers / aromatherapists etc.) cannot afford IFRA / RIFM’s annual fees, & so are locked out of access to a lot of detailed safety data.
• Perfume manufacturing orgs. require the implicit adherence of their members to IFRA Standards & CoP [note: these are not legal requirements, with the exception of Eco-label fragrances]. However many traditional perfumes types, as well as natural, organic & functional perfumes are almost impossible to construct under existing IFRA regulations.
• Safety data is often generated by the major aroma corporates in an atmosphere of secrecy & may have private ownership issues attached; data can be difficult to locate, & expensive or virtually impossible for the general public to obtain. There is also a lack of transparency by regulatory professionals.

Healthy factory environments: at least, nobody ever caught a cold!

The ‘Zero Risk Mindset’.

• EU Regulators apply - (or appear to have been pressurised into, by ‘invisible’ lobbyists) a disproportionate & excessive degree of regulation wrt aromatic ingredients, which appears to be an attempt to construct a clean, risk-free and largely synthetic-based world of their own. That is not the world that most of us wish to inhabit, and Cropwatch believes that many will ignore any restrictions which deny us the use of those familiar natural materials which we associate with our lives, our heritage & our traditions.

“..a society that does not try to shape its future ends up being dictated to by its own anxieties.” - Hunt (2004)

So How Dangerous is it to go Outside…?

• The green leaves of trees & plants continuously emit a- & b-pinenes, limonene etc. Shenck (1979) estimated that 438 million tons of monoterpenes* evaporate into the air continually from biological materials [*natural monoterpenes that are designated ‘dangerous for the environment’]. It has been calculated that one European forest puts more chemicals into the environment that the whole EU chemical industry.
• Emitted leaf volatiles also react with ozone to form irritating / sensitising terpene epoxides. Some US fragranced home-care products containing limonene are labelled (paraphrasing): do not use if smog outside !
• Tree leaf volatiles also react with nitrogen oxides from combustion engine emissions causing chemical smogs. Academics at Lancaster University (2002) recommended that UK councils modify the planting of certain VOC emitting trees (maple trees: good; oaks & poplars: bad!) (not, you will notice, take any steps to stop cars emitting nitrogen oxides).

Nature: Presents More Hazards than Using Fragranced Products?

• Inhalation of fern spores poses a cancer risk to countryside visitors / dwellers, & the spores are also a risk to the safety of potable water supplies (Calif. Prop 65).
• Unregulated nuisance farm crops such as mustard seed-rape (flowers & roots) emit allyl isocyanate, benzyl cyanide etc. into the air & soil. Aerial dispersion causes respiratory distress / allergy to many in vicinity (see Rapeseed report: Cropwatch Files).
• This is not to mention the unregulated intake of natural carcinogens, mutagens, toxins etc. consumed in food & spices, & beverages (e.g. methyl eugenol from pesto, safrole from nutmeg, and the CMR1 substance ethanol).

Crop of Unregulated Allyl Isocyanate & Benzyl Cyanide Emitters (Brassica napus L. ssp. oleifera) [i.e. Rapeseed or Canola].

Forest of Unregulated a- & b-Pinene Emitters (Pinus sp.), Finland, near Local Aquifer! (can you spot the Daphnia?)

Unregulated Phenylacetaldehyde Emitters Lotus corniculatus L. [Birdsfoot Trefoil] growing in the Shetlands! Photo credit: T. Burfield.

Unregulated Wild-Flower Coumarin Source (Melilotus officinalis L.) [i.e. Yellow Meliliot from which a perfumery absolute is made].

Unregulated Plateful of Suspected Rodent Carcinogen posing as Foodstuff [A plateful of methyl eugenol containing Pesto!].

REACH.

• Industry is seen as a cash-cow by the EU H&S Commission. REACH registration costs will potentially ruin all but the largest aroma concerns, in spite of concessions for SME’s. The aroma industry magnates therefore divisively support the REACH regulations as a means of eliminating competition.
• The ECHA has created an unmonitored situation under REACH (e.g. for lead registrants & for SIEFS etc.) where bullying and mafia-like activity by large aroma industry corporates has gone unrestricted.
• REACH will severely reduce the available portfolio of fragrance ingredients – Western companies will only be able to make ‘Mickey Mouse’ perfumes.
• REACH has already driven the focus of activity of leading trans-international aroma companies out of Europe.
• Leading toxicologists are opposed to REACH (see next slide)

The Basis of REACH challenged

• The idea that the toxic effects of a chemical show a dose-dependent linear relationship ending at a threshold level is now challenged: at low levels adaptive, non-adverse or even beneficial effects occur (hormesis), and have been shown for >6,000 chemicals (Calabrese 2004).
• This raises a ‘serious misreading of the term toxic’ charge for the EPA, and for the ECHA over the REACH legislation, and suggests that the 50-100 million Euros spent on the exercise is wasted, and will not save a single life.
• The above reference to the EPA needs to be seen as what appears to be a gagging order, mentioned a document prepared by the EPA in 2004, which states that the purpose of a risk assessment is to identify risk (harm, adverse effect etc.), effects that appear to be adaptive, non-adverse or beneficial may not be mentioned. - through Calabrese (2007) ”Belle Newsletter: Introduction. “ Human & Experimental Toxicology 26, 845.

The importance of natural aromatic ingredients.

• Naturals breathe life into an otherwise simple blend of chemicals, adding depth and sophistication - whether floral absolutes, woody materials or citrus oils are employed (many of these ingredients will disappear under REACH).
• Whole fragrance styles / families would not exist without naturals – for example, Eau de Colognes, Eau Fraiches.
• Many landmark fragrances & fragrance styles owe their conception to key natural materials e.g. the chypre style of Mitsouko & Miss Dior, which were based on accords of oakmoss, patchouli oil and labdanum together with bergamot oil.
• Many essential oils lend an incomparable radiant freshness to fragrances e.g. lime, lavender & petitgrain. It is hard to imagine an impressive masculine fine fragrance which merely relies on synthetic materials for its freshness.

A Timid Industry.

• Cosmetic / biocidal / detergent & cleaning ingredient restrictions & regulation proceed with little effective trade questioning or objection in the EU, leading to questions about why industry is so timid (see Durodie 2004).
• But ‘the worm is turning’. In the US, cosmetics-based SME’s are grouping together to prevent financially discriminating legislation acting against them – for example over the crippling fees & costs involved with compliance to the FDA Globalisation Act HR-759, 2009). The Colorado Safe Personal Products Act HB-1248 which proposed zero tolerance for many ‘hazardous’ single cosmetic ingredients (& so was potentially even more extreme than existing European legislation) failed in committee (01.03.2010) due to pressure from SME’s. In S.E. Asia, producers of natural aromatic materials & cosmetics are just starting (Feb 2010) to form anti-regulation groups to protect their livelihoods.

Shortcomings of the EU Cosmetic Commission’s H&S Policies.

• The EU Cosmetics Commissions’ CoP refuses to define ‘safety’, there is no individual ingredient risk quantification, it does not consider ingredient risk / benefit considerations (except for preservatives), it does not allow in-use considerations, & it does not allow for end-consumer adverse reaction statistics to affect safety policy - as apparently this is not ‘bona fide’ evidence (Daskaleros 2007).
• This ‘risk-only’ chemophobic scenario leads to a state of toxicological imperialism, where over-precaution & scare-mongering are de rigueur, and where pharmaceutical & chemical company lobbying disadvantages competitive natural products. Worrying situations of vested interest (e.g. in the SCC(S)(P)) remain unaddressed. Europe has become a hostile environment for perfumery; many concerns have relocated outside the EU.

A Lack of Cross-Disciplinary Expertise..

• EU Cosmetic Comm. staff admitted to Cropwatch (Brussels 2007) they were unable to find the services of a botanical expert, and the SCCP had no literature search ability until 2007 (& so previously could not properly independently review the evidence presented to them). Now a pool of 160 ’experts’ is supposedly to be made available to Brussels staff (but no word on any botanists!).
• The previous safety assessments of many / most natural fragrance ingredients by RIFM have proceeded via industrially donated materials which have not been botanically identified at source by an expert, were not batch-tracked and not proven as 100% derived from the named botanical. The lack of forensic and taxonomic application has led Cropwatch to describe a number of IFRA Standards as non-robust, where botanical identifications (as published) are either incorrect, incomplete or based on false assumptions of ingredient purity e.g. for opoponax (see Cropwatch Files - Opoponax).

..and a Lack of Ecological Awareness..

• The industrial over-exploitation of many natural aromatic species by the Cosmetics & Pharmaceutical industries remains virtually unchecked – by the time a CITES listing or an IUCN Red Listing is in place, it is often too late to save the species under threat, or the full compliment of its’ genetic diversity.
• For example while IFRA pondered a new Standard for styrax qualities, less than 15 hectares of Asian styrax trees remained unlogged in Turkey.
• Commodities from rare or threatened species include: agarwood oil, sandalwood oil East Indian, sandalwood oil East African, rosewood oil, Cedrela odorata oil, guaiacwood oil, copaiba balsam, gurjun balsam, candeia plant spp., costus qualities, Parmelia (fragrant lichen) qualities, some frankincense yielding spp. e.g. Boswellia papyrifera, chaulmoogra oil and many others (see Cropwatch data-base on Threatened Aromatic Species).

Media Bad Science on Naturals – an Example.

• Gynecomastia in 3 pre-pubertal boys, allegedly caused by using lavender/TTO-containing cosmetics / personal care products (Henley et al. 2007), received much newspaper coverage in 2007-8. The New England Journal of Medicine which ran the article, had previously announced a policy change, as it could not find independent experts for peer reviewing, who had not been paid off in some way by industry (Newman 2002). A pity, since refutation of the robustness of science behind the alleged gynecomastia-lavender/TTO link followed [e.g. by Nielson (2008) & Lawrence (2007) amongst others], but of course, received no attention from the popular media.

Bad Science on Naturals in Peer-Reviewed Journals – An Example.

According to Frosch, White et al. (2002):

• patchouli oil contains cinnamic aldehyde, benzaldehyde & eugenol!
• Atlas cedarwood oil contains alpha-ionone!
• sandalwood oil contains geraniol & citronellol!
• the main components of spearmint oil are limonene, 3-octanol, menthone and dihydrocarvone (but no mention of the major constituent: carvone!)

Ref: Frosch P.J., Johansen J.D., Menné T., Pirker C., Rastogi S.C., Andersen K.E., Bruze M., Goosens A., Lepitoittevin J.P. & White I.R. (2002) “Further important sensitisers in patients sensitive to fragrances II - Reactivity to essential oils.” Contact Dermatitis 47, 279-287.

Part 2. The Mis-regulation of Natural Ingredients – some Examples

Destroying the very foundations of perfumery.

• The restriction/banning of key fragrance ingredients on dubious / over-precautionary safety grounds, can easily compromise the founding elements of the traditional perfumery art. For instance, the crucially important fougère perfumery accord consists of a combination of bergamot, coumarin & oakmoss.
• Bergamot oil usage is under threat from potential EU legislation because of its allegedly photo-toxic furocoumarin (FC) content (see flawed SCCP Opinion 0942/05, then compare with the Cropwatch FC data-base).
• Oakmoss was originally proposed to be restricted as a sensitiser under SCCP/1131/07, limiting the potent sensitisers atranol & chloroatranol to 2ppm in product. Cropwatch (2009) described this Opinion as unsafe from a failure to consider all the published evidence (which it has subsequently made publicly available). EU policy on oakmoss / treemoss has since been modified.

Public Objections to ‘Safe’ Reformulations of Classic Perfumes.

• Reformulations of classic perfumes, carried out in order to conform to modern regulatory requirements, have led to disappointment and bitterness amongst their long-term devotees, whose historical memories and emotional attachments are evoked by the odour profiles of particular fragrances, as part of their rightful cultural inheritance. Many fragrance houses seem in-denial about the whole subject, but Turin (2007) has remarked on customer anger generated during the Guerlain Mitsouko reformulation debacle. Internet discussions on a wider range of classic perfumes whose character has been allegedly mutilated by reformulation are available (for example see Perfume of Life Forum Jan 2007)…

Natural Ingredient Usage Declines.

• The usage of naturals has declined in perfumery from downward pressure on ingredient costs (synthetics are comparatively cheaper), erratic supply (climatic & geophysical events; political events; demand pressures) & from stability & compositional issues.
• Under existing EU H&S policy, natural complex substances are treated as a collection of individual composite chemicals. The vast majority of essential oils, absolutes & resinoids contain several of the 26 named allergens, which have to be labelled under EU Directive 2003/15/EC (now under review). The desire by cosmetic manufacturers to avoid excessive product labelling has previously lead to some decline in the overall usage of essential oils.
• Under CHIP / EU DPD & DSD (now under the CLP 1272/2008/EC), R50/53 environmental labelling (dead fish / dead tree symbols) and R65 labelling have had a serious impact on usage of citrus oils & their terpenes. Citrus oils have been traditionally employed in many types of perfumes for household & air care products due to their diffusion, lift & fresh character, but perfumers now find it difficult to use them for the reasons above. Ditto for pine needle oils.
• Cinnamon leaf & clove oils were used in pot pourris & candles, but R43 issues with cinnamic aldehyde & eugenol contents etc. mean that their use is restricted.
• Minor oils that IFRA has banned / restricted on predictive toxicological grounds, but has no funds to practically investigate – melissa, santolina, boldo etc. NB Cropwatch recently published the Robertet toxicological evidence on melissa oil showing the original IFRA ban was unjustified
• Natural products needing expert botanical identification & chemical analysis for QRA studies, are/were not supported (read: can’t afford to support) by IFRA– opoponax, styrax..

The ‘Weak Animal Carcinogens’ Issue.

• The EU classification of methyl eugenol as a suspected rodent carcinogen & mutagen, and safrole as a hepatocarcinogen, together with corresponding IFRA restrictions, has led to a great reduction in the use of those natural materials which contain them, such as the methyl eugenol-containing spice oils: clove bud, pimento leaf & pimento berry. The use of rose oil has been similarly affected - it is now virtually impossible to create a 100% natural rose fragrance which complies to IFRA guidelines, formulated with >1% rose oil. Use of cinnamon leaf & nutmeg oils too, has also been curtailed by the safrole classification, as has the use of basil & tarragon oils containing estragole (weak carcinogen, weak mutagen).
• Such limitations have had significant effects on fragrance styles entering the market place: traditional aromatic masculine fougères and rich spicy notes are very difficult to achieve at so-called ‘safe’ levels.

Some Inconvenient Classifications.

• Safrole: carcinogen cat. 3 mutagen cat. 2 (EFFA CoP 2009). Occurs in sassafras, nutmeg, mace, star anise & cinnamon leaf oils.
• Methyl chavicol: Possible weak genotoxic hepatocarcinogen (SCF 2001). Occurs in star anise, exotic basil, fennel, tarragon oils.
• Methyl eugenol: Possible carcinogen (US). Calif. Prop. 65 carcinogen. Occurs in rose, basil, bay WI, cananga, citronella Sri Lanka, pimento, lovage & betel oils etc. Human exposure levels normally several magnitudes below bioassay levels for rats, mice; relevance of rodent data questioned (Robison & Barr 2006).
• Ethanol: CMR cat 1. Cosmetic manufacturers are currently withdrawing ethanol from mouthwash formulations. Indispensable ingredient to cosmetics trade.

Legislation-Compliant Ingredients?

• Cropwatch has a large A-Z data-base of articles on the various furocoumarin (FC) contents of natural products following FC phototoxicity issues (under SCCP/0942/05 etc.). Companies like Treatt, Capua etc. now market a range of FC-free citrus oils, but small traditional producers of citrus oils are potentially disadvantaged without huge technology investments. And for what reason? The safety case for reducing FC’ s to the minute levels the EU proposed in cosmetic products is not robust, and other commonly used cosmetic ingredients also show photo-toxic effects.
• To date, safrole-free nutmeg qualities, methyl eugenol-free rose oil, IFRA compliant oakmoss qualities, furanocoumarin-free bergamot oil etc. etc. have all proven to be more-easy-to-adulterate, pale olfactory shadows of traditionally produced natural products. This reduction in ingredient quality compromises the art of the possible in perfumery practice.

‘Allergic’ Fragrance Ingredients.

• SCCNFP in Opinion SCCNFP/0017/98 & 0329/00 identified a number of fragrance chemicals (16 of which occur in natural products) associated with a labelling obligation for allergens where conc. in the final product is <0.01%>
• Independent papers / peer-reviews (e.g. those by Schnuch, Floc�fh, Vocanson, several by Hostynek & Maibach) have indicated that there is no robust clinical or experimental evidence to support many of these 26 ingredients as allergens. Schnuch (2008) asked the EU to rethink their policy.
• Hostynek & Maibach�fs (2008) detailed article on �gAllergic Contact Dermatitis to Linalool: Allergen Status Disqualified�h has appeared in a third consecutive journal/trade magazine.
• A request for an updated scientific opinion on the labelling of 26 fragrance substances which were introduced into Annex III of the Cosmetics Directive by 2003/15/EC was made by the EU Commission of the SCCP, politically passed off as ‘a spin-off from the public consultation (Nov 2006) on the Commission proposal of regulation of some fragrance substances’.
• "Scientific information of general and specific nature has been submitted to DG-ENTR. in order to ask the SCCP for a revision of the 26 fragrances with respect to further restrictions and possible even delisting.”
• “At that time there were not sufficient scientific data to allow for determination of dose response relationships and/or thresholds for these allergens”.

- Cropwatch comments: if this is manifestly correct, why did they go ahead with the legislation?

• The older Opinion SCCNFP/0017/98, divided allergens as most frequently listed (list A) and infrequently listed (list B), but the recent Brussels request to the SCCP (see previous slide) makes no reference to the work of Schnuch et al. (2007), who called for a slightly different list of substances to be reviewed as allergens, on the basis of his published work indicating there were no safety concerns to consumers for a number of these SCCP allergens.

The Tea Tree Oil (TTO) Debacle

• TTO is in a Catch-22 situation. It is universally acknowledged by microbiologists as a useful biocide except by the EU Biocides Commission. Therefore, apparently, TTO in EU cosmetic products ‘does not have a cosmetic purpose’ (SCCP/1155/08).
• Also according to SCCP/1155/08, diluted TTO might be unstable in cosmetic formulations, skin & eye irritation not assessed by adequate methods. The SCCP identified data-gaps relating to subchronic toxicity, percutaneous absorption, genotoxicity / carcinogenicity & reproductive toxicity.
• The ATTIA (& RIRDC) made the big mistake of submitting a safety dossier to the SCCP on these shortcomings, at a cost of £200,000 Australian, thus creating a precedent for the whole essential oils industry. The SCCP took nearly 2 years to evaluate their data, and still were not satisfied.
• Adverse end-user reactions from sales of tens of millions of small bottles of TTO by major distributors runs at <>

Vanillin

• Under IFRA’s 44th Amendment, vanillin was at first restricted on alleged QRA sensitisation grounds, but this restriction is currently suspended (this dithering costing industry hundreds of thousands of Euros in reformulation, ingredient stock adjustment, costs of buying in substitution stock and re-labelling). Current vanillin consumption is about 6,000t/y.
• Vanillin has been the foundation of the oriental fragrance family formed from accords of vanillin, balsams, spices, patchouli, woods, salicylates and citrus oils. Jicky, created in 1889 by Guerlain was the first major oriental fragrance founded on this accord.
• In the early to mid 1990s a major vanillic trend was founded on an overdose of vanillin and vanilla. Beginning with Vanilla Fields (Coty 1993), a host of sweet vanillic floral and vanillic floriental fragrances were launched e.g. Tocade (Rochas 1994), Loulou Blue (Cacherel 1995), Le Male (J. P. Gautier 1995), Allure (Chanel 1996), Ghost (2000). This trend of the 1990s has lead to a general sweetening of fragrance styles, (and consequently a generally higher use of vanillin), which is apparent today in the myriad of oriental masculine styles (e.g. 212 Sexy for Men 2006) and fruity floral feminine types and fruity florientals (e.g. Delicious Night DKNY 2007).
• Evidence for the alleged very weak sensitising activity of vanillin (according to IFRA) rests on 3 pieces of evidence, 2 of which are hardly new but are unavailable to the general public:

Basketter D.A., Wright Z.M., Warbrick E.V., Dearman R.J., Kimber I., Ryan C.A., Gerberick, G.F., White I.R. (2001). “Human potency predictions for aldehydes using the local lymph node assay.” Contact Dermatitis, 45, 89-94.

RIFM (Research Institute for Fragrance Materials, Inc.), 1970. Maximization study with vanillin. RIFM report number 1760, October 7. (RIFM, Woodcliff Lake, NJ, USA).

RIFM (Research Institute for Fragrance Materials, Inc.), 2009. Human repeated insult patch test. DRAFT REPORT. (RIFM, Woodcliff Lake, NJ, USA).

• Opposing evidence to the sensitising potential of vanillin was listed in Cropwatch Newsletter 15 – for example >99% vanillin ex lignin has been found non-sensitising. But it is likely that this major fragrance ingredient will yet suffer severe usage restrictions on dubious QRA testing grounds.

Coumarin

• Coumarin is regulated by EU Directive 2003/15/EC such that coumarin requires labelling as a sensitiser if present at concentrations of >10ppm in fragranced leave- on products, or >100 ppm in fragranced products washed off the skin.
• SCCP Opinion /0935/05 on 99.9% pure coumarin, shows the expert committee had misunderstood the data, incorrectly concluding that pure coumarin is a sensitiser - Schnuch (2004), Floc’h et al (2002), Vocanson et al (2006 & 2007) and many others have opposing views. Cropwatch’s submission to DG-Ent. on coumarin was never acknowledged.
• Minor impurities in some commercial grades of synthetic coumarin used for allergy testing (dihydrocoumarin; 6-chlorocoumarin etc.) may however be sensitising.

Only 1 well-documented clinically relevant case of allergy to coumarin has ever been reported (Mutterer et al. 1999). Low numbers of clinically relevant cases exist for many other alleged allergens listed under EU Directive 2003/15/EC. The legislation clearly lacks proportionality.

• EFSA (2004) concluded that coumarin is non-genotoxic. Any human carcinogenicity issues may only be relevant to very small sub-section of human population (Lake 1999).
• Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) had to be publicly corrected in 2007 on alleged risks with coumarin toxicity from cosmetics. The BfR had wrongly maintained that the TDI (0.1mg/d) for coumarin could be exceeded by the normal application of cosmetics. Commentators are on record as saying that Prof. Hensel has, additionally, not understood species differences relevant to coumarin metabolism.

Other Fragrance Ingredients with Questionable Restrictions.

• Benzaldehyde (used for almond & cherry notes); tagetes oils & absolutes; oakmoss & treemoss qualities; FC-containing citrus oils; opoponax & styrax qualities; jasmine absolute; santolina, boldo & melissa oils; oils of the Pinaceae.
• All of these and many others have been discussed by Cropwatch (see website), and many are the subject on on-going investigations to reverse the hasty & over-precautionary limitations imposed.

References.

• Calabrese E.J. (2004) “Hormesis – basic, generalisable, central to toxicology and a method to improve the risk assessment process” J Occup Enviro Health 10(4), 466-7.
• Calabrese E.J. (2007) ”Belle Newsletter: Introduction. “ Human & Experimental Toxicology 26, 845.
• Daskaleros T. (2007) remarks made during Cropwatch meeting with EU Cosmetics Commissioners & DG-Ent staff 2007 Brussels, July 2007.
• Durodie B. (2004) “The timid corporation – why business is terrified of taking risk.” Risk Analysis 24(1), 2004.
• EFSA (2004)
• Floc’h F. (2002) “Coumarin in plants and fruits: implications in perfumery.” Perf. & Flav. 27 (Mar/Apr 2002), 32-36.
• Frosch P.J., Johansen J.D., Menné T., Pirker C., Rastogi S.C., Andersen K.E., Bruze M., Goosens A., Lepitoittevin J.P. & White I.R. (2002) “Further important sensitisers in patients sensitive to fragrances II - Reactivity to essential oils.” Contact Dermatitis 47, 279-287.
• Henley D.V., Lipson N., Korach K.S., Bloch C.A. (2007) “Prepubertal gynecomastia linked to lavender and tea tree oils.” New England Journal of Medicine 356 (5), 479–485.
• Hostynek J. & Maibach H. (2008) “Allergic contact dermatitis to linalool” Perfumer & Flavourist 33, 52-56.
• Hostynek J.J. & Maibach H.I. (2003) "Is there evidence that anisyl alcohol causes allergic dermatitis?" Exog. Dermatol. 2, 230-33.
• Hostynek J.J. & Maibach H.I. (2003) "Is there evidence that amylcinnamic aldehyde causes allergic dermatitis?" Exog. Dermatol. 3, 35-46.
• Hostynek J.J. & Maibach H.I. (2003) "Is there evidence that linalool causes allergic dermatitis?" Exog. Dermatol. 2, 223-229.
• Hostynek J.J., Maibach H.I. (2004) “Is there evidence that geraniol causes allergic contact dermatitis?” Exog. Dermatol. 3(6), 318-331.
• Hostynek J.J., Maibach H.I. (2004) “Sensitisaton potential of citronellol” Exog Dermatol 3(6), 307-312.
• Hostynek J.J., Maibach H.I. (2004) “Is there evidence that alpha-methyl-ionone causes allergic contact dermatitis?” Exog. Dermatol. 3(3), 121-143.
• Hostynek J.J., Maibach H.I. (2006) “Is there evidence that alpha-methyl-ionone causes allergic contact dermatitis?” Cutaneous & Ocular Toxicol. 25(4), 259-271
• Hunt B. (2004) The Timid Corporation – Why Business is Terrified of Taking Risk
• Lake B.G. (1999) “"Coumarin metabolism, toxicity & carcinogenicity: relevance for human risk assessment" Food and Chemical Toxicology 37, 423-453
• Lawrence B.M. (2007) “Estrogenic activity of lavender & tea tree oils Part II.” Perf. & Flav June 2007.
• Mutterer V., Giménez Arnau E., Lepoittevin J.P., Johansen J.D., Frosch P.J., Menné T., Andersen K.E., Bruze M., Rastogi S.C., White I.R. (1999) "Identification of coumarin as the sensitizer in a patient sensitive to her own perfume but negative to the fragrance mix." Contact Dermatitis. 40(4):196-9.
• Nielsen J.B. (2008) “What you see may not always be what you get – Bioavailability and extrapolation from in vitro tests.” Toxicology in Vitro
• Newman N. (2002) "Big Pharma, bad science." The Nation 25 July 2002.
• Robison S.H. & Barr D.B. “Use of biomonitoring data to evaluate methyl eugenol exposure.” Environ Health Perspect. 114(11), 1797-18001.
• Schnuch A. (2004) Öko-Test, No. 7 (July) 2004, 55
• Schnuch A., Uter W., Geier J., Lessmann H., Frosch P.J. (2007) “Sensitization to 26 fragrances to be labelled according to current European regulation. Results of the IVDK and review of the literature.” Contact Dermatitis. 57(1),1-10.
• Shenck G.O. (1979) Perf Kosm 60, 397.
• Storrs F.J. (2007) “Allergen of the year: fragrance.” Dermatitis 18(1),3-7
• Turin L. (2007) “Due Credit” NZZ Folio 04/07.
• Vocanson M. (2006). "The skin allergenic properties of chemicals may depend on contaminants – Evidence from studies on coumarin." Int Arch Allergy Immunol 140, 231–238
• Vocanson M. et al. (2007) “Lack of evidence for allergenic properties of coumarin in a fragrance allergy mouse model.” Contact Dermatitis 57(6), 361-364.

Acronyms.

• ATTIA – Australian Tea Tree Industries Association
• BfR - Federal Institute for Risk Assessment
• BPD – Biocidal Products Directive
• DG-ENT - Directorate General (Branch of European Commission responsible for Industry)
• CoP – Code of Practice
• E.O. – Essential Oil
• ECHA - European Flavour & Fragrance Association
• EFSA - European Flavour & Fragrance Association
• FC – FuroCoumarin
• H&S – Health & Safety
• IFRA - International Fragrance Association
• QRA - Quantitative Risk Assessment
• REACH - Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals
• RIFM - Research Institute for Fragrance Materials
• RIRDC – Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation (Australian Govt).
• SCCNFP - Scientific Committee on Cosmetic Products and Non-Food Products
• SCCP - Scientific Committee on Consumer Products
• SCF – Scientific Committee on Food
• SME – Small to Medium sized Enterprise
• TDI - Tolerable Daily Intake
• TTO – Tea Tree Oil
• VOC – volatile organic carbons

Natural Perfumers Guild Associate Tony Burfield - Powerpoint of talk to British Society of Perfumers; Predicts move of perfumery out of the West due to Excessive Regulations

Tony Burfield gave a talk entitled “Is excessive regulation destroying the perfumery art?” at the British Society of Perfumers Safety Symposium, 11th March 2010, held at the Belfry Hotel near Cambridge, UK. Click the link http://www.cropwatch.org/Tony%20Burfield%27s%20talk%20to%20BPS%20final.ppt to download a Power Point presentation of the talk. In contrast to the other speakers, who mainly advised on how to conform to the minutiae of existing REACH requirements, the new Classification, Labelling & Packaging (CLP) of substances and mixtures regulations, and other EU measures (as well as adherence to the IFRA CoP), Tony attempted to outline the disproportionate nature of EU Cosmetics legislation, and its attempts to create an artificial world of synthetic based products which would be "safer" than nature itself.

Tony asked why the aroma industry had been so timid in the face of the burgeoning legislation which would all but destroy it, and why it couldn't find the time to challenge much of the bad science behind some of the more over-precautionary measures.

In a previous feature "Perfumers and the 40th IFRA Amendment" (Burfield 2007) first put out on Basenotes in Feb 2007, Tony had noted the declining importance & influence of the Professional Perfumer, no longer the courageous and opinionated artists, and rarely seen any more as company board members. Their decline in industrial status, often to a level slightly under that of the Regulatory Affairs Assistant, is even more evident now that previously. Yet  he was informed one by a well-known perfumer working for one of the major fragrance corporates, that the new generation of software-using perfumers have no problem in conforming to the avalanche of new regulations.

He interpreted this as referring to a younger generation who have probably never smelled a genuine yllang-ylang oil, or an unadulterated  sandalwood oil East Indian (as they are invariably ‘extended’ at source), and have a sparse knowledge or experience of the massive range of exotic natural aromatic materials. He further contends that they may well spend most of their working time tinkering with formulae, working on substitutions for contra-indicated ingredients such as cyclamen aldehyde, lyral, lilial or polycyclic musks, or lately even key materials like linalol (current shortage of this important ingredient apparently due to fire in a major producing facility in China).

Where do we go from here? With the impact of REACH set to remove a huge number of ingredients (both synthetic and natural) from the perfumers palette, and with over-exploitation continuing to endanger the future availability many natural aromatic materials, it is hard to see much future for the perfumery art in Europe, unless marketeering hype can induce consumers to buy products only suitable for consumers with unsophisticated tastes & perceptions.

As previously mentioned, many consumers are noticing the increasing evidence of 'chemical' notes creeping into fragrances, and some have used fairly negative odour descriptors to Cropwatch about individual perfumes (out of the multitude of today's short-lived  fragrance launches) which they perceive as  smelling  like 'cough candy', 'fly spray' or 'drain-cleaner'. Tony contends that the time is right for the centre of creativity, and progress in the art-of-the possible in fragrance design to move away from the West with its over-cautious ingredient restrictions.

The toxicologists, who now seem to call the shots in this profession, have helped ruin the aroma industry, yet can only point to a vanishingly small number of instances  where any alleged adverse consumer effects from fragrances have manifested as clear cut clinical cases. The future of perfumery surely lies outside the West, in countries which have more proportionate and should we say, a less hysterical approach to cosmetics health & safety regulation.

Natural Perfumers Guild Associate Tony Burfield of Cropwatch to Speak at the British Society of Perfumers Symposium Oxford, UK, March 11, 2010

Tony Burfield of Cropwatch will be presenting a talk at the British Society of Perfumers Safety & Regulatory Issues Symposium at Cambridge on 11th March 2010.

The talk is entitled "Is excessive regulation destroying the perfumery art?"

The following is a synopsis of his talk:

'The disproportionate & excessive degree of regulation of fragrance ingredients appears as part of an attempt by EU regulators and their professional toxicologist advisers to construct a clean, risk-free and largely synthetic-based world of their own own. The timidity of industry in the face of this situation of toxicological imperialism is hard to understand, given the customer backlash against the reformulation of perfume classics, & the non-robust science behind many perfume ingredient restrictions. With visible anti-regulation based anger now bubbling over from both the end-user and the ingredient producers, many are asking who is to blame for this dire situation, and does the future of perfumery now lie outside Europe and the USA?'

New Natural Perfumers Guild member Judi Leake is the Winner of the Steffen Arctander CD!

The winner of the Steffen Arctander CD worth $900 is new Guild member
Judi Leake of Colorado.

Congratulations, Judi! I hope the great information in this CD will be a wonderful addition to your study materials on the natural perfumery path.

Liability Insurance for the Bath and Beauty Microbusiness Community

I am posting this ad for Stratus Insurance, letting everyone know about the great deal they offer to the bath and beauty microbusinesses.  I was in negotiations with them for both the Guild and the 1800+ member Yahoo! natural perfumery group and the natural perfumery community at large.
 
They're offering great rates to the Natural Perfumers Guild, and some folks might want to join to save over non-Guild rates ;-) Don't forget we have a 20% off rate for Guild memberships until 11:59 PM February 14th. http://naturalperfumers.com/payment20.htm

BTW, if you have a business that is not 100% natural perfumery, you can still join in the Stratus deal. I did negotiate on behalf of the NP community, but I realize many here may use fragrance oils or aromachemicals. You can still get this insurance.

Just make sure you use this page to apply:
http://www.stratusins.info/perfumers_app.php

At the bottom of the page, if you're not a member of the Guild, check off if you are a member of the Yahoo NP group - this will work for everyone at this time. I will work with Natasaha Gray of Stratus to confirm Guild members, since we've had about a dozen new members in the past week and they're not listed on the website yet. In the future, the Guild will have a separate application page. Also, for the non-Guild and non-NP group members, they're going to reword this to be more inclusive in the future, perhaps "Found via a link from Anya's Garden."

Coverage:
For Guild members $1/M/$475yr.
non-Guild: $1M/$525yr.

Limits are as follows:

$1,000,000 General Aggregate Limit
$1,000,000 Products-Completed Operations Aggregate Limit
$1,000,000 Personal and Advertising Injury Limit
$1,000,000 Each Occurrence Limit
$100,000 Fire Damage Limit
$5,000 Medical Payments

For additional $55 you can increase Aggregate and Products to $2,000,000 at any time during the policy.

Giveaway drawing and 20% off Natural Perfumers Guild membership through February 14th, 2010

It's the "Feel the Love" time of year for the Natural Perfumers Guild

20% off all new memberships between now and February 14th - see below for details

Plus

You'll be entered for a chance to win the Steffen Arctander CD!

This valuable CD retails for $900, and it might be yours if you join the NPG between February 1 and February 14, 2010. If your completed application and membership fee are received between those dates, your name will be entered into the giveaway for the CD.

This is a great opportunity to be in the running to obtain one of the most coveted research tools in perfumery. The legacy of Steffan Arctander is that he produced one of the best reference books (or, in this case, CDs) in the history of perfumery. Read more about it by clicking here.

Plus --- Guild members also receive 30% off all Allured publications, a great deal 365 days of the year!

If you wish to join the Guild in this two-week window of opportunity to be in the drawing for the Arctander CD, please go to this page to fill in the application form, and to this page to submit your payment. Please note you must use the payment page listed above to receive your membership fee discount.

Here are the membership fees showing the 20% off rate:

Professional Perfumer: Two categories depending upon number of employees $102 or $180/yr.

Associate: creates body, home or environmental products. Two categories depending upon number of employees - $102 or $180/yr.

Supplier: Vendor of equipment and materials $180/yr

Friend: Anyone interested in natural perfume $60/yr

The winner will be announced on February 14, 2009, and we wish everyone who joins good luck in the drawing!

Membership Benefits:

Some of the benefits include:

*Listing in the Guild directory and the companion blog. This provides two websites for visitors to click through to your URL *Media and event publicity - we are dedicated to raising public awareness of, and demand for, natural perfumery products.

*Use of the Guild logo on your website and on printed materials. The Guild logo is a well-recognized symbol of artisan perfumers.

*Discounts from Guild Members - Some members will offer standard discounts, others may negotiate on a case-by-case basis.

*Early notification of natural perfumery events and classes - stay informed on what is offered in the natural perfumery world.

*Access to the private Guild Forum - available to all members who wish to communicate with each other.

*Ability to participate in Guild events at a discount and also receive discounted fees for events from affiliated organizations, including professional conferences and schools.

Membership Goals and Objectives Professionalism:

The Guild works to raise the professional standards of artisan natural perfumers, and to help them receive the recognition for their dedication to the artistry of working with natural aromatics.

Communication: Promote interaction and the exchange of information between artisan perfumers amd associates with suppliers to further develop the perfumer's palette and materials.

Promotion: To bring together individuals involved in the production of natural perfumes, and to represent and promote their interests to the public and media.

Education: To encourage the education and training of people interested in careers as artisan natural perfumers, and to develop a mentor program.

Sustainability: Reaching out to growers and distillers around the world to encourage the production and sourcing of boutique natural aromatics.

Legislative: The Guild monitors and actively participates in the shaping of regulations that affect the perfumery industry.

The winner will be announced on February 14, 2009, and we wish everyone who joins good luck in the drawing!

Natural Perfumers Guild Associate Tony Burfield of Cropwatch to Speak at World Perfumery Congress, Grasse, France

Cosmetics and Perfume Industry Watchdog Tony Burfield of Cropwatch to Speak at World Perfumery Congress

The World Perfumery Congress meets every three years, and the 2010 meeting will be June 1 - 4, 2010 in Grasse France. Tony Burfield of Cropwatch, a champion of natural aromatics, and a scientist who challenges of guidelines of The International Fragrance Association (IFRA) will be a featured speaker. Tony is a Charter member of the Natural Perfumers Guild and has collaborated in the past with Guild President Anya McCoy and Associate Robert Tisserand on IFRA-related white papers.

The Congress will commence with an exhibition (new raw materials, molecules, software, and books pertaining to the perfume industry) at La Rotonde Riviera; this expo will be held on all four days of the Congress. General sessions will be held June 2 and 3 at the Grand Auditorium and will include presentations by industry speakers.

Natural Perfumers Guild Perfumer Lisa Fong Announces Redesigned website, 20% off sale

Artemisia Natural Perfume has a beautiful new website to celebrate the new year,
and a sale to celebrate love.

Start the new year with a new, beautiful scent. Artemisia Natural Perfume is now on sale until 2/14/2010 with 20% off everything, including samples. We are now offering solid perfumes on sale for only $20. Visit our new website at www.artemisiaperfume.com

Natural Perfumers Guild Supplier Aromawear hosting fragrance party in New York City

You are invited to a unique holiday experience and private AROMAWEAR sale.

UPDATE: extended to December 9th - see details below

While you shop for your award-winning AROMAWEAR scent diffusing gifts (including free samples of natural perfumes by members of the Natural Perfumers Guild), entertain your palette with sweet and savory tastings and a bit of bubbly and delight your senses at the AROMAWEAR SCENT BAR with the essential oils that will help you

Cheer up, tune in, love more, stay well, calm down, bliss out, eat less, kick butt and of course smell good....

WHEN: TUESDAY DECEMBER 8TH and 9TH 5:00-9:00pm
Can't make it? Shop at www.aromawear.com
WHERE: AROMAWEAR STUDIO
69 Perry Street, #2, New York, NY 10014
(between Bleecker and West 4th Street)
RSVP SPACE IS LIMITED, PLEASE ADVISE
cathy@aromawear.com 212 243 3223

I will also be introducing my latest essential oil discovery called PASSION by Stacey Sanchez: a joyful, uplifting aroma that brings a smile to your face and fullness to your heart.

Bring your friends and forward this email to anyone you would like to delight!

Looking forward to seeing you.

Cathy

Natural Perfumers Guild Suppliers Aromahead Institute Offering Component Blending Class in Aromatherapy

The Component Blending class at Aromahead Institute takes place over a 3-day weekend and includes an in-depth study of the chemistry, therapeutic uses, and blending techniques for a wide selection of conifer and helichrysum essential oil species. Blending is approached from a medicinal, component perspective, looking at which components are most powerful within the oil, and choosing oils based on this approach. Students receive a custom manual written by Andrea Butje.

This is a great class for people with some solid background in essential oils who want to learn more about the chemistry and medicinal uses of the oils.

Sarasota, Florida
Jan 8-10, 2010
Cost: $450

Natural Perfumers Guild members featured in series on Niche Perfumers Fall/Winter scents

Natural Perfumers Guild member Anya McCoy featured on The Scented Salamander website series: North American Originals:Perfumers on Fall & Winter.

Anya's Garden Perfume's two new colder season scents, MoonDance and StarFlower are explained in Part Two

From the Scented Salamander:
American perfumery is as varied as its landscape. One of its most notable traits is the fact that in spite of the presence of giant corporations like Coty or Estée Lauder, there exists a strong breed, I am tempted to say, of independent perfumers who appear by contrast even more like the necessary missing pieces of a vast puzzle. And without them, one could argue, American perfumery would be forgetting the flip side of anonymous efficiency, large-scale organization and big business, that is, originality, primitivism, naïveté, a sense of community, intimacy, individualism and let us not forget, the can-do attitude. If we only had the big labels, we would still have rivers of perfume, but we would have less of a certain moral spirit, the individualist one. And I don't know really what is America without the individual.

She or he is like the flavor of home-grown local herbs added to a standard national recipe.

Nonetheless, we still need the giants because without the Leviathans, perfumery would not be as democratic an art, a pleasure and a way of life. Mass-marketed perfume may be a French invention borne out of the intuitions of François Coty, he who knew perfume could both be a sign of luxury and a household name, but mass-market perfumery particularly thrives in the United-States thanks to sheer size and a deep culture of consumerism.

Ultimately, the ideals of democracy and pluralism that are the bread and butter of the American psyche open up enough room for independent perfumers to be not isolated and too rugged but an expression of a particular sensitivity.

In this series we meet with a number of North-American indie perfumers who reveal a naturalistic approach. They can be distinguished from so-called "niche perfumers" easily by realizing that their reference point is their own personal experiences. Indie perfumers are more hands-on and are usually less inspired by a tradition, genres, a cannon or the market. And as far as independent perfumery goes, this means to me also that independent perfumers make their perfumes themselves almost from scratch, even sometimes devising their own ingredients or searching for new sources of natural inspirations in their self-cultivated gardens. Due to this sensitivity to the naturalist context, their catalogs tend to be colored, more or less explicitly, by real-world references like the seasons in an impressionistic sense, or the fruits of the seasons. Some of these perfumers have extensive libraries of scents, others concentrate on a more compact collection.

To develop one step further the food metaphor, American Originals are more like non-processed food. Even though indie perfumers do not necessarily use only natural ingredients, the creative process itself seems more natural and unmediated. An art of the vignette is born where nature is approached in an interpersonal manner, where scents refer to a precise point in time, evoke warm, nostalgic memories.

After asking a group of independent perfumers for their thoughts on Fall & Winter fragrances, I have weaved their voices and their beautiful words into a virtual conversational exchange. Some perfumers who have contributed longer answers, I have taken the liberty to interrupt for a day to let them pursue their thoughts on the next not because what they said was too long but because it creates a balance and a rhythm, a journal-like quality that echoes for me, the charm of truly seasonal fragrances as natural clocks of time, images of the ebb and flow of the days.

I will add short bios on the last day of the series.

The Evil Stepmother and the Father Who Will Not See - the FDA/GMP is out to perpetuate the eternal scenario

As many of you know, I have fought for years against the creeping corporate takeover of indie and microbusinesses. Just search on this (my Anya's Garden blog) for IFRA, EU, FDA Globalization Act and government. But first, please read the link below, at the end of this blog. The future of our businesses is in immediate danger. I am horrified that several organizations that represent indie and microbusinesses are in lockstep with the FDA and tweeting and blogging about their 'victories" with legislators, either blinded or too blind to see the horrible demise in store for our businesses - they should be fighting the FDA, not kowtowing to it, giddy with "making progress". They're not, they're being fooled.

Please everyone - don't be the frog in the pot of cool water who never feels the heat being turned up until it is too late and he's cooked.

Read this following speech, given at the International Herb Symposium by Stephen Buhner and pass it around, and more importantly, ask those who are all puffed up and happy that the FDA and legislative lackeys of the corporate world that seeks to destroy our businesses why they don't see this coming:

http://www.gaianstudies.org/documents/IHSOPEN.pdf

Natural Perfumers Guild Associate Celia Lyttelton Interviewed on Rick Steves Radio Show on her book "The Scent Trail"

Natural Perfumers Guild Associate Member Celia Lyttelton, Author of The Scent Trail is interviewed by Rick Steves for his radio show. Scroll down the page to click on the Windows Media file.

From the website, describing the Sept. 26, 2009 broadcast:

Celia Lyttelton shares her story of how she traveled the world to collect the ingredients for her own perfect personal perfume — the perfect souvenir for the person who already has everything — and explains the powerful connection fragrances hold between places, memories, and our emotions. Also, travel writer Don George and callers discuss how the Kindness of Strangers saved the day on more than one overseas occasion and a new set of listener travel haiku takes us sailing in the Caribbean.

Another Great Giveaway - Join the Natural Perfumers Guild for a chance to win the $900 Arctander CD, *the* Main Reference for Perfume and Fragrance

Allured Business Media, a Charter Supplier member of the Natural Perfumers Guild, has generously supplied a CD of the three-volume book set that includes Aroma Chemicals Vol. 1, Aroma Chemicals Vol. 2 and Natural Origins Vol. 3, for a new-member giveaway. This valuable CD retails for $900, and it might be yours if you join the NPG between September 15 and October 5, 2009.

If your completed application and fee for the one-year membership is received between those dates, your name will be entered into the giveaway for the CD and other prizes. Go here to apply and here to pay the membership fee.

There will be lots of other prizes offered, too: Keepsake copies of the catalogue from Mandy Aftel's groundbreaking exhibit on natural perfumery, both mini and full-size bottles of perfumes, body care products, books, and more, all from current Guild members. All new members will be entered into a random drawing on October 5th to determine their prize - good luck!

The biggest prize, the Arctander CD, is one of the most coveted research tools in perfumery. From the Allured site:

This set includes at least 90% of all chemicals presently used in flavors and fragrances, monographs, all known natural essential oils, extracts, oleoresins along with chemical structure, practical physical data, appearance, odor and flavor type. Also available in this comprehensive set are botanical information, detailed odor and flavor descriptions, suggested uses, literature references and some safety and regulatory information.

Arctander's books are also available on one CD-ROM. Everything you could find in Perfume and Flavor Materials of Natural Origin and Perfume and Flavor Chemicals (Aroma Chemicals) is now even easier to locate on this useful CD-ROM. No time to flip page after page looking for information? A simple click of the mouse will find everything you need in this highly navigable format.

The Natural Perfumers Guild is dedicated to perfumes and all fragrance products that use botanical extracts solely as their scent source. No synthetic aromatics are used in creating the perfumes, and no diethyl phtlate or other synthetic extenders are in any of our perfumes. We create and celebrate all fragrance products that use botanically-based aromatics, as we are artisans dedicated to the alchemy and hands-on methods of time-honored traditions or natural perfumery.

Built upon the goal of fostering the art of natural perfumery through education, legislative efforts and networking among members, the Guild is an organization that welcomes all who love fragrant botanicals.

Membership

Categories, Goals and Benefits

Professional Perfumer: Two categories depending upon number of employees $125 or $200/yr.

Associate: creates body, home or environmental products scented with natural aromatics. Two categories depending upon number of employees - $125 or $200/yr.

Supplier: Vendor of equipment and materials $200/yr

Friend: Anyone interested in natural perfume $75/yr

Membership Goals and Objectives

Professionalism: Raise the professional standards of artisan natural perfumers, and to help them receive the recognition for their dedication to the artistry of working with natural aromatics.

Communication: Promote interaction and the exchange of information between artisan perfumers amd associates with suppliers to further develop the perfumer's palette and materials.

Promotion: To bring together individuals involved in the production of natural perfumes, and to represent and promote their interests to the public and media.

Education: To encourage the education and training of people interested in careers as artisan natural perfumers, and to develop a mentor program.

Sustainability: Reaching out to growers and distillers around the world to encourage the production and sourcing of boutique natural aromatics.

Legislative: The Guild monitors and actively participates in the shaping of regulations that affect the perfumery industry.

Benefits

*Listing in the Guild directory and the companion blog. This provides two websites for visitors to click through to your URL

*Media and event publicity - we are dedicated to raising public awareness of, and demand for, natural perfumery products. Additionally, the Guild will publish your press release for your business

*Use of the Guild logo on your website and on printed materials. The Guild logo is a well-recognized symbol of artisan perfumers and natural aromatics worldwide

*Discounts from Guild Members - Some members will offer standard discounts, others may negotiate on a case-by-case basis

*Early notification of natural perfumery events and classes - stay informed on what is offered in the natural perfumery world

*Access to the private Guild Forum - available to all members who wish to communicate with each other.

*Ability to participate in Guild events at a discount and also receive discounted fees for events from affiliated organizations, including professional conferences and schools

The Guild welcomes all who love natural aromatics. Our only restriction in membership is in the Professional Perfumer category. If you create both natural and semi-synthetic perfumes you will be placed in the Associate category, not the Professional Perfumer category, as that is reserved for those who use only natural aromatics.

After joining the Guild, you will enjoy a private conversation group on Yahoo where you can interact on a daily basis with other Guild members, if you wish. Guild President Anya McCoy is a frequent participant there, as are many of the members.

If you wish to join the Guild in this one-month window of opportunity to be in the drawing for the Arctander CD, please go to this page to fill in the application form, and to this page to submit your payment.

The winner will be announced on October 5, 2009, and we wish everyone who joins good luck in the drawing!

Natural Perfumers Guild Member Saponifier - September/October Issue

Natural Perfumers Guild member Saponifier Magazine's September Issue is Packed with Great Business and How-to Articlesclick the above image to view full size

Here's a peek at the Table of Contents page of the Sept/Oct issue of Saponifier magazine. Everything from boot camp basics for soapmaking to business guidelines and how to take great photos of your products are covered. Subscriptions are only $24.95 for six issues (one year). The beautiful graphics and informative articles are a pleasure to read and enjoy each issue and the bottom line is that Saponifier aims to make your business successful.

Natural Perfumers Guild member's book reviewed on Perfume Shrine

Helg of the Perfume Shrine blog has reviewed Natural Perfumers Guild Associate Alec Lawless' book "Artisan Perfumery - Or Being Led by the Nose". She provides a glimpse into each chapter and comments on the finer points raised and the unique views of Lawless offers about this niche art. Readers will have a chance to obtain the book and perfume samples from Lawless at a discount offered to readers of Perfume Shrine.

Natural Perfumers Guild member Allured Business Media offering 20% off books

Allured Business Media offering 20% discount until Dec. 31, 2009

If you are a perfumer, flavorist, perfumista, spa owner, formulator of body care products, in the fragrance field or any related industry, you'll be happy to know that Natural Perfumers Guild member Allured Business Media, a leading source of publications, monographs, CDs and other educational and industrial materials for the industry is once again offering a great discount to readers of this blog. However, please feel free to spread the word about the discounts to other websites, as this great deal is also meant to reach the bigger internet audience.

Now through December 31, 2009, you can get 20% off any book by using the code Anya20 at checkout. Your discount won't show up until you click through the checkout process. Just click here to see the wealth of reading materials offered in this special deal. Hope you have some great publications in your hands soon, thanks to them!

The Natural Perfumers Guild Welcomes New Supplier Member Essentially Me of the UK

Essentially Me joins Natural Perfumers Guild

Essentially Me, sister company of new Guild member Aqua Oleum, has joined the Natural Perfumers Guild as a supplier of perfume ingredients and perfumery supplies.

Based in the Cotswolds region of the UK, the company was born out of Alec Lawless's passion for natural fragrance. Whilst Aqua Oleum supplies Essential Oils and Absolutes, Essentially Me specialises in providing natural ready-to-use materials for perfumery. Alec recognised that many of the absolutes and concretes are extremely difficult to work with, being solid or highly viscous at room temperature. To combat this problem, he has developed a range of more than 60 single note fragrances called extraits that are a 20% dilution in aged organic grain alcohol, as well as a botanical musk, ready to start blending.

We also supply a range of perfumes developed by Alec.

Alec's book, "Artisan Perfumery - Or Being Led by the Nose" is available exclusively from the Essentially Me website. This fascinating book tells not only about his 20 years of blending perfumes and sourcing oils, but also how wine appreciation, psychology and philosophy help in understanding perfumery.

Essentially Me is pleased to offer 10% discount to members of the Natural Perfumers Guild. Please email us and we will set up your account on our website. sales@essentially-me.co.uk

-----------------------------------

Sian James

Tel: +44(0)1453 882525

Mob: +44(0)7753 303587

http://www.essentially-me.co.uk

A Lovely New Book for Artisan Perfumers - Artisan Perfumery by Alec Lawless

Artisan Perfumery or Being Led by the Nose

by
Alec Lawless

I'm on vacation, so this won't be a long review, but I just had to get the word out on Alec Lawless' new book, Artisan Perfumery or Being Led by the Nose. The title should give a hint of his humorous approach to the subject of artisan perfumery, and he is consistent throughout the book with his sly wink at the industry, of which he's been a part of for over twenty years.

The co-owner of Aqua-Oleum, along with his ex-wife, famed aromatherapy author Julia Lawless, Alec knows where the greatest aromatics are to be found, either in essential oil, concrete or absolute form, and after years of playing with the essences, began blending. He has a wonderfully relevant background in wine appreciation, and some of his observations on scent and perception, working in his love of sensory and psychology topics, are eye - and nose - openers.

Lest I forget, the book's cover, a small piece of an original artwork he also sells, is pointedly evocative of the lush and beautiful nature of naturals, jasmines and lotus being the cover focus, more aromatics depicted on the full canvas. I have an order in for a print - ah, if only I could have gotten this artwork for my book. Well, I know all current and potential authors of perfumery books will be envious of the artwork, as they will be of his background and travels in search of aromatics, which he freely shares.

Some of the idiomatic British English terms in the book were mysteries to me, but the author speaks clearly, in his own conversational tone throughout, as if you're sitting down with an old friend who is a raconteur sharing all of his devilishly funny observations, so you just slide past them. You'll get the full meaning where it counts, so you'll come away bursting with ideas from the positive and inspirational stories.

Although Alec dips slightly into the world of aromachemicals, and admits he uses them at about 1% in his own blends at Essentially Me, his focus is on naturals. I love that he's incorporated Jean Carles study methodology, and for the first time, to my knowledge, a GC/MS and how to read one appears in a contemporary book!

I just found a page on his perfumery site that combines the book and samples of his perfume. The books is reasonably priced at £9.99, with samples, £19.99

Alec shares some wonderful insights in aging and "softening" alcohol for perfumery that any artisan perfumer would find educational. After speaking with him the other day, I hope I convinced him to create a short video of how to use the pipettes sold on the Essentially Me website. He readily agreed, and I have a feeling that we'll be hearing a lot more of this fellow who has burst on to the artisan perfumery scene with a book, a perfumery raw materials and lab equipment website and decades of knowledge to share.

Natural Perfumers Guild members receive a 10% discount on purchases from Aqua Oleum and Essentially Me, and will also enjoy Alec sharing his knowledge in the private Guild Yahoo chat group. Welcome to our Guild and thank you for producing this lovely book for all artisan perfumers to enjoy.

Julia Lawless' Aqua Oleum joins the Natural Perfumers Guild

Aqua Oleum Joins Natural Perfumers Guild

Aqua Oleum is delighted to join the Natural Perfumers Guild as a supplier of Essential Oils and Absolutes.

Aqua Oleum, based in the beautiful Cotswolds region of the UK, has for more than 20 years provided the finest quality essential oils sourced from around the world. The business is owned by Julia and Alec Lawless. Julia is a highly regarded writer on aromatherapy, whose publications include "The Encyclopedia of Essential Oils".

Alec, in turn, focuses on ensuring that the company not only provides the finest oils but operates in an ethical manner in our relationships with both suppliers and customers. We offer highly competitive prices and unrivaled product knowledge.

We ship internationally. Visit our webshop on www.aqua-oleum.co.uk

We are pleased to offer a 10% discount to any Guild member. Please contact us on info@aqua-oleum.co.uk and we will set up an account on our website for you.

Also keep an eye out for news of Aqua Oleum's sister company which will be joining the Guild soon...

The Natural Perfumers Guild Winner of the Steffen Arctander CD is Ilaine Upton of Virginia, USA

Congratulations to new member Ilaine Upton of Virginia - her name was chosen randomly from among the new members of the Guild who joined in May, 2009. The drawing was to coincide with the 3rd Anniversary of the launch of the Guild on June 1, 2006. As we enter our fourth year, we are delighted that we can offer such treasured items as the Steffen Arctander CD of his three-volume set Perfume and Flavor Materials of Natural Origin and Perfume and Flavor Chemicals Thanks to Guild Supplier Allured Business Media for donating this wonderful CD, valued at $900.

Ilaine joined as a Friend of the Guild and stated on her application: "First it was a rose garden. Then rose otto, absolute and concrete. Then the search for something that would blend with it. Well, there was the 1877 volume of Perfumery and Kindred Spirits, purchased decades ago, sitting quietly... (then the application form cut her off! LOL)

Well, Ilaine, you should find this searchable CD a great addition to your studies, and we in the Guild wish to congratulate you on your win.

Reminder: Natural Perfumers Guild Supplier Allured Business Media Offers 30% off all books Through June 30, 2009

30% discount off any book published by Allured Books through June 30th!

Natural Perfumers Guild member Allured Books - 30% off books

Offer good through June 30, 2009

Once again Allured Books, a division of Allured Business Media, has come through with a great discount offer on books! Allured is one of the top publishing houses in the world for fragrance and cosmetics books.

If one of their gems is on your wish list, now is the time to take advantage of this offer and save! Just enter Anya30 as the coupon code when checking out to receive the 30% off the price of the book(s). If you have any questions on their books or ordering online, you can contact them at Books@allured.com, subject line- Anya30. Web site - www.allured.com/bookstore

30% off any Allured Publishing Media book through June 30th

Natural Perfumers Guild member Allured Business Media - 30% off books

Once again Allured has come through with a great discount offer on books! Allured is one of the top publishing house in the world for fragrance and cosmetics books, and if one of their gems is on your wish list, you may wish to take advantage of this offer. Just enter Anya30 as the voucher code when checking out to receive the 30% off the price of the book(s).

New Members - The Natural Perfumers Guild Will Celebrate Beginning Its Fourth Year on June 1st with a Chance to Win the Arctander CD worth $900

The Natural Perfumers Guild Will Celebrate Beginning Its Fourth Year on June 1st
with a Chance to Win the Steffen Arctander CD worth $900 - New Members Only

From the Slow Scent Newsletter May 1, 2009 sent to Subscribers

The Natural Perfumers Guild will celebrate its Fourth anniversary on June 1, 2009 and Guild President Anya McCoy in asssociation with Allured Publishing Media announces that a CD of the three-volume set that includes Aroma Chemicals Vol. 1, Aroma Chemicals Vol. 2 and Natural Origins is being awarded in a random drawing for new members who join the Guild this month.

This valuable CD retails for $900, and it might be yours if you join the NPG between May 1 and June 1, 2009. If your completed application and membership fee is received between those dates, your name will
be entered into the giveaway for the CD.

This is a great opportunity to be in the running to obtain one of the most coveted research tools in perfumery. The legacy of Steffan Arctander is that he produced one of the best reference books (or, in this case, CDs) in the history of perfumery.

Read about this opportunity here:

http://www.naturalperfumers.com/send050109.htm

Arctander CD giveaway drawing for new members of the Natural Perfumers Guild

The Natural Perfumers Guild will celebrate its Fourth anniversary on June 1, 2009 and Allured Publishing Media has generously supplied a CD of the three-volume set that includes Aroma Chemicals Vol. 1, Aroma Chemicals Vol. 2 and Natural Origins for a new-member giveaway. This valuable CD retails for $900, and it might be yours if you join the NPG between May 1 and June 1, 2009. If your completed application and membership fee is received between those dates, your name will be entered into the giveaway for the CD.

This is a great opportunity to be in the running to obtain one of the most coveted research tools in perfumery. The legacy of Steffan Arctander is that he produced one of the best reference books (or, in this case, CDs) in the history of perfumery. From the Allured site:

This set includes at least 90% of all chemicals presently used in flavors and fragrances, monographs, all known natural essential oils, extracts, oleoresins along with chemical structure, practical physical data, appearance, odor and flavor type. Also available in this comprehensive set are botanical information, detailed odor and flavor descriptions, suggested uses, literature references and some safety and regulatory information.

Arctander's books are also available on one CD-ROM. Everything you could find in Perfume and Flavor Materials of Natural Origin and Perfume and Flavor Chemicals (Aroma Chemicals) is now even easier to locate on this useful CD-ROM. No time to flip page after page looking for information? A simple click of the mouse will find everything you need in this highly navigable format.

The Natural Perfumers Guild is dedicated to perfumes and all fragrance products that use botanical extracts solely as their scent source. No synthetic aromatics are used in creating the perfumes, and no diethyl phtlate or other synthetic extenders are in any of our perfumes. We create and celebrate all fragrance products that use botanically-based aromatics, as we are artisans dedicated to the alchemy and hands-on methods of time-honored traditions or natural perfumery.

Built upon the goal of fostering the art of natural perfumery through education, legislative efforts and networking among members, the Guild is an organization that welcomes all who love fragrant botanicals.

Membership

Categories, Goals and Benefits

Professional Perfumer: Two categories depending upon number of employees $125 or $200/yr.

Associate: creates body, home or environmental products scented with natural aromatics. Two categories depending upon number of employees - $125 or $200/yr.

Supplier: Vendor of equipment and materials $200/yr

Friend: Anyone interested in natural perfume $75/yr

Membership Goals and Objectives

Professionalism: Raise the professional standards of artisan natural perfumers, and to help them receive the recognition for their dedication to the artistry of working with natural aromatics.

Communication: Promote interaction and the exchange of information between artisan perfumers amd associates with suppliers to further develop the perfumer's palette and materials.

Promotion: To bring together individuals involved in the production of natural perfumes, and to represent and promote their interests to the public and media.

Education: To encourage the education and training of people interested in careers as artisan natural perfumers, and to develop a mentor program.

Sustainability: Reaching out to growers and distillers around the world to encourage the production and sourcing of boutique natural aromatics.

Legislative: The Guild monitors and actively participates in the shaping of regulations that affect the perfumery industry.

Benefits

*Listing in the Guild directory and the companion blog. This provides two websites for visitors to click through to your URL

*Media and event publicity - we are dedicated to raising public awareness of, and demand for, natural perfumery products

*Use of the Guild logo on your website and on printed materials. The Guild logo is a well-recognized symbol of artisan perfumers

*Discounts from Guild Members - Some members will offer standard discounts, others may negotiate on a case-by-case basis

*Early notification of natural perfumery events and classes - stay informed on what is offered in the natural perfumery world

*Access to the private Guild Forum - available to all members who wish to communicate with each other.

*Ability to participate in Guild events at a discount and also receive discounted fees for events from affiliated organizations, including professional conferences and schools

The Guild welcomes all who love natural aromatics. Our only restriction in membership is in the Professional Perfumer category. If you create both natural and semi-synthetic perfumes you will be placed in the Associate category, not the Professional Perfumer category, as that is reserved for those who use only natural aromatics.

After joining the Guild, you will enjoy a private conversation group on Yahoo where you can interact on a daily basis with other Guild members, if you wish. Guild President Anya McCoy is a frequent participant there, as are many of the members.

If you wish to join the Guild in this one-month window of opportunity to be in the drawing for the Arctander CD, please go to this page to fill in the application form, and to this page to submit your payment.

The winner will be announced on June 2, 2009, and we wish everyone who joins good luck in the drawing!