On 3 December, under the patronage of Eric Andrieu, Member of the European Parliament and Vice President of the Committee on Agriculture, a round table on essential oils organised by IFRA has enabled the challenges faced by producers of natural complex substances to be assessed.
The aim of this round table was to ensure the ongoing commitment of all stakeholders in researching practical solutions to facilitate the registration of essential oils in REACH, in particular lavender essential oil.
It enabled all parties to evaluate the progress made by three projects earmarked as key, in terms of resolving particular issues, namely:
1) the characterisation of essential oils for the purpose of compiling an appropriate classification of these essential oils
2) the drafting of specific protocols for ecotoxicity analyses
3) the socio-economic impact on the industry in order to find sufficiently acceptable financial conditions.
'I hope that today has shown that this project is being taken very seriously by all parties, and that the ambitious work plan and schedule - albeit tight - will lead to conclusive results to ensure that essential oils can be registered successfully by 2018,' stated Eric Andrieu.
