Natural products have been at the centre of Essencia’s activities for over 70 years. With our passion for natural raw materials we were predestined to become specialists in essential oils, and for the past 10 years also in natural perfumes.
About 15 years ago our industry started working on the first sustainability and social responsibility initiatives. Especially the big players in our industry were able to pave the way for all of us to follow. In 2016 IFRA and IOFI decided to join forces to develop a charter and a common framework in the fragrance and flavour industry to enhance our industry’s contribution to sustainable development. Essencia was one of the driving forces in the process and part of the first summit. Today we are proud to be one of about 100 companies to have signed the charter so far.
As a medium-sized company it is important for us to be able to use already well-established practices or join other players in the industry to push for more sustainable products from our suppliers. The IFRA and IOFI focus on the 5 following areas:
• Responsible sourcing
• Environmental footprint
• Well-being of employees
• Product safety
• Transparency
Essencia is already well advanced in areas such as ‘well-being of employees’ and ‘product safety’.
In others there is room for improvement. In the years ahead, our focus will mainly be on sourcing responsibly and reducing our environmental footprint. We have therefore already contacted our Top20 suppliers to establish our base line and identify the potential for improvement.