Written question asked by Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party) on Wednesday, 23 October 2019, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 6 November 2019. It was answered by Lord Duncan of Springbank (Conservative) on Wednesday, 30 October 2019 on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Perfume: Labelling

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government what requirements are placed on producers of perfume and fragrance products to list their ingredients on product packaging.

Answer: Under Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (“the Cosmetics Regulation”) containers or packaging of cosmetic products (or on an enclosed or attached documentation) must set out a list of ingredients, including perfume and aromatic compositions and their raw materials. These perfume and aromatic compositions must be referred to as ‘parfum’ or ‘aroma’. Annex III of the Cosmetic Products Regulation requires that the use of certain substances is subject to restriction. The presence of a substance listed in Annex III must be indicated in a product’s list of ingredients, in addition to the words parfum or aroma. At the moment, 26 fragrance allergens are listed in in this Annex. The labelling must be on the carton, or if there is no outer packaging, then on the container. If the perfume or fragrance is small and difficult to label, the ingredient list may be on a leaflet provided with the product, or displayed close to where the product is offered for sale.

Secondary information