Much of the fragrance industry is breathing easier today. The European Parliament has reversed its proposal to categorise essential oils as toxic substances. In the end, the European Commission has concluded that these substances do not pose a threat to human health.
The Environment Committee of the European Parliament voted late on Tuesday night in favour of the revision of the CLP Regulation in favour of the perfume and cosmetics industry, which is welcome in Spain. Spain is a world leader in the production of essential oils, with more than 70,000 hectares of cultivation of plants such as lemon, thyme and lavender.
This news has been especially celebrated in areas of Castilla-La Mancha, an autonomous community where there are more than 120 lavender producers, especially in the provinces of Guadalajara and Cuenca. The governmental authorities of this territory have described this as a victory and are satisfied with this decision.
Val Díez, Director General of Stanpa, noted in a press release Stanpa's role in this decision: "We have been working hard for many months to protect the future of essential oils and their entire value chain. We are immensely pleased with the positive steps that have been taken in recent key dates on this vitally important issue for the industry. From the vote cast by the European Council on 30 June, which opted to maintain the current approach, to the recent position adopted by the European Parliament, which abandons the intention to include essential oils as chemical substances in the revision of the so-called CLP Regulation. Our aim is to continue to gather all our efforts so that the final decision is strong and we can celebrate the preservation of the perfume industry as we know it today, offering the consumer natural ingredients and generating an important mass of employment in rural Spain".
Asímismo, this decision that took in the night of 12 September still is slope to be ratified by the rest of the European authority.