Fragrances are often very complicated chemical mixtures and the exact formulation is usually strictly confidential. To enable fragrance manufacturers to keep their formulations secret, but still provide information about the safety of the ingredients, IFRA certificates are used.

 

IFRA (International Fragrance Association) certificates provide information on the safety of a fragrance and the limits at which it can be used in different cosmetic products. There are specific categories relating to how and where the product is used.

 

When you use a fragrance, your supplier will provide you with an IFRA certificate which you simply send to us with your formulations. IFRA are not routinely needed for Essential oils, however we may ask you to request the IFRA from your suppliers when an essential oil has restricted components.

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The amount of fragrance that can be used in a product is based predominantly on two factors

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• IFRA Certificates ​

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These are used to calculate the theoretical maximum that can be used safely based on ingredients that are restricted by IFRA

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• Margin of Safety (MOS)

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The margin of safety is calculated for each product based on the amount of fragrance used. In some cases, this is much lower than the  IFRA limit because we also account for substances that are not restricted by IFRA but that must also be included in the overall assessment for safety​

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IFRA issue periodic updates. Currently your IFRA certificates should be IFRA 49 or 50, all previous versions have been superceded.  This is another reason why you must obtain and check IFRA and Allergen data whenever you order your ingredients.