IFRA sets out fragrance safety approach at ASEAN cosmetic workshop in Manila

IFRA's Caroline Li explained how fragrance safety is assessed, and how the IFRA certificate is used within a wider cosmetic safety assessment, at a two-day workshop in Manila, the Philippines, in August 2026.

The ASEAN Cosmetic Safety Assessment Workshop was hosted by the Chamber of Cosmetic Industry of the Philippines (CCIP) and brought together more than 90 participants from across the region. A large share came from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), for whom safety assessment obligations can be the hardest to navigate.

Dr Li, Regional Director, Asia Pacific at IFRA, gave a talk covering IFRA's role, the risk assessment process that underpins fragrance safety, and the place the IFRA certificate occupies in a company's cosmetic safety assessment file.

The keynote speech was given by Ana Trinidad F. Rivera, Director IV of the Center for Cosmetics and Household Urban Hazardous Substances Regulation and Research at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the Philippines. Dr Li and Ms Rivera also discussed the future of fragrance safety training and education across the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"I look forward to future collaboration between IFRA, CCIP and regulatory authorities on fragrance and cosmetics safety assessment in ASEAN", Dr Li said.

Safety assessment requirements across ASEAN markets continue to develop, and workshops of this kind give regulators, industry associations and manufacturers a shared reference point for how fragrance ingredients are evaluated before they reach the consumer.