We all like to jump on perfume houses that reformulate our favorite perfumes into banality, but all too frequently they are simply complying with new regulations. Ready for more bad news? IFRA (the International Fragrance Association) has now proposed restrictions on the use of citrus oils in cosmetics and perfumes. You can read a summary of the original proposal at Furanocoumarins in cosmetics – worrying developments at the Aromaconnection blog, and a more detailed response from Cropwatch (an "independent watchdog for endangered and vulnerable natural aromatic products") can be found at IFRA moves towards forcing perfumers to abandon citrus oils at Anya's Garden.
Please feel free to comment, but I haven't done more than skim the articles linked to above and I haven't the patience to do more than that, nor can I comment on the science behind the various claims. But regardless of how you feel about synthetic aroma materials, it is very sad to watch the slow disappearance of natural materials from perfumery. Here is Luca Turin's 2005 response to the news that Guerlain was reformulating its classics to comply with IFRA regulations
