THE CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS - IFEAT

So the outcome of the study shows that fragrances are really a clear discriminator of products, ofconsumer choice, they fuel the growth of entire sectors, and they have made new sectors possible. Wehave taken L’Occitane as one example. What would L’Occitane be without the fragrance industry, butthere are many more examples. If you look at the overall job situation, obviously this study enables usto show that the implications derived from fragrances expand the picture and the number of peoplethat are employed by the industry, as opposed to only looking at the people employed in the fragrancehouses.The Outcome• Study shows the fundamental role of theindustry and the innovations it has engendered– It provides the discriminator for many new householdproducts coming from the R&D of leading brandssupporting jobs and adding value to the economy– It has fueled the growth of the entire air care sector– It has been the basis for new retail formats such as“L’Occitane en Provence”– It is basis of many jobs in the informal economy, e.g.,direct selling, making a critical contribution to manyhouseholds in these trouble economic times20ALLERGENSLet’s move on to another topic, and this isallergens. As you are probably all aware, theSCCS, which is the scientific committee of theEuropean Union relating to consumer safety, hasissued an Opinion and let’s not be misled by this,an opinion is only an opinion. OK, if I asked youfor your opinion, “Do you like my tie?” somewill say “yes” some will say “no”. At the end ofthe day, it is only an opinion and it will not makeme change my opinion that I want to wear my tietoday.Allergens• The SCCS, an independent scientific bodyin the EU, has delivered its opinion• DG SANCO is the risk manager who mustrespond to the SCCS opinion• SANCO’s easy option is to simplyimplement all the SCCS recommendations• Our objective: Influence the Commission,as risk manager, to take data-driven view21226