Givaudan receives Fair for Life certification for natural fragrance ingredient
Sustainable naturals are something of a holy grail in today’s cosmetics and fragrance market. Fair for Life certification is an ECOCERT program that endeavors to make such ingredients comprehensible and, by extension, attainable.
ECOCERT came on to the scene in 1991 and developed its standard for organic and natural cosmetics in 2003. Then in 2006 the Fair for Life certification was introduced by the Swiss Bio-Foundation (or IMOswiss AG). It’s been revised and updated several times since, and eventually became part of ECOCERT.
Fair for Life focuses on issues of fair trade and working conditions: “The aim of the Fair for Life Social & Fair Trade Certification Programme is to ensure fair and positive relations between producers and their cooperatives or contracting companies, between workers and their employer, between sellers and buyers on the world market while at the same time ensuring performance of standards,” according to fairforlife.org.
Essential oils
On Monday, January 23, Givaudan announced that its clove leaf oil supply from Madagascar has been certified Fair for Life. (The actual certification determination seems to have been made sometime last year, but the fragrance and flavor company is sharing the news now.)
For the Fair for Life program, as with all certification initiatives, having prestigious companies participate is a win-win. “We are pleased to see that Givaudan has chosen Fair for Life as an innovative fair trade certification programme,” Philippe Thomazo, CEO of ECOCERT Group, tells the press.
“In 2016, we certified their clove leaf essential oil in Madagascar, where they have been supporting and building long-term and respectful relationships with their local suppliers. This demonstrates their sincere commitment to go further in the implementation of their Responsible Sourcing programme,” says Thomazo.
Lofty goals
Givaudan established a company-wide Responsible Sourcing Program last year to address issues of safety, ethics, and human rights. The central tenets of the program are health and safety, social, environment, and business integrity, according to a press release about the newly certified clove leaf oil.
“By taking this first step to certify our collection network, we are further demonstrating our commitment to responsible sourcing practices and, in line with our 2020 strategy, partnering for shared success with our communities, suppliers and customers,” says Gilles Andrier, CEO of Givaudan.
“Fair for Life is a guarantee that Givaudan Madagascar and its local partners ensure the traceability of clove leaf oil from the farm to the new processing plant NATEMA,” adds Andrier. (The Natural Extracts Madagascar (NATEMA) facility is run by Givaudan and a partnering company, Henri Fraise Fils et Cie.)
