# Research Institute of Fragrance Materials

The Research Institute for Fragrance Materials, Inc. (RIFM) is the leading global organization performing and advancing science to support the safe use of fragrance-producing chemicals in personal and household care products. The fragrance industry relies on RIFM’s fragrance material safety assessments to help ensure safe use. Scientific conclusions detailed in these assessments form the basis for the International Fragrance Association (IFRA) Standards. RIFM has published assessments covering over 2,000 of these ingredients in the peer-reviewed scientific literature.
RIFM was founded in 1966 as a non-profit organization and has since 1984 maintained a database of physical-chemical, toxicological, and eco-toxicological data associated with known fragrance and flavor materials. The RIFM Database contains over 80,000 references and approximately 200,000 human health and environmental studies, the most comprehensive source of toxicology data, literature, and general information on fragrance ingredients worldwide.
RIFM has developed rigorous safety assessment protocols featuring animal-free new approach methodologies (NAMs). RIFM scientists perform risk assessments that integrate hazard and exposure information on two kinds of fragrance-producing ingredients: natural and discrete materials. These assessments follow the peer-reviewed RIFM Criteria Documents for natural and lab-created ingredients. Using current scientific methodologies, RIFM evaluates six areas (or endpoints) of human health plus environmental impact in its comprehensive safety assessments:
Genotoxicity, or damage to the genetic material in the body’s cells.
Repeated dose toxicity, or effects due to prolonged usage and exposure.
Reproductive toxicity, or effects on fetal, infant, and childhood development or sexual function in adults.
Skin sensitization, which is a rare allergic reaction on the skin.
Photoirritation (light-induced skin irritation reaction) and photoallergenicity (allergic reaction).
Local respiratory toxicity, or effects in the organs of the respiratory system.
Environmental toxicity, specifically impact on the aquatic environment.
In addition, all RIFM fragrance material safety assessments are reevaluated at least five years after initial publication, and an updated version is written, incorporating any new, impactful data, if necessary.
RIFM’s collaborative approach harnesses the expertise of its science staff and those of academic institutions, fragrance manufacturers, and regulatory bodies worldwide to share knowledge and ensure the most rigorous and up-to-date scientific bases for the safe use of fragrance. The Fragrance Material Safety Resource Center, an open-access website maintained by Elsevier, Inc., makes all of RIFM’s current peer-reviewed publications and much of its historical published work accessible for free to the public.
All of RIFM's scientific findings are evaluated by the independent Expert Panel for Fragrance Safety—an international group of academic scientists founded in 1967. The Expert Panel provides strategic guidance, determines scientific study design, and interprets test results for relevance to human health and environmental protection. The Panel also reviews, approves, and co-authors all of RIFM’s safety assessments. The Expert Panel selects its own members, who serve on a rotating basis. It comprises internationally known academic scientists, including dermatologists, pathologists, toxicologists, reproduction, respiratory, and environmental scientists. Additional expertise is provided by adjunct groups with knowledge of genetic toxicity, respiratory science, reproductive effects, environmental fate, and epidemiology.
RIFM’s eighth and current president, Anne Marie Api, PhD, Fellow ATS, has been a fragrance safety scientist since 1984. RIFM’s previous presidents include James C. Romine, PhD (2015-2023), David K. Wilcox (2012-2015), Ladd Smith, PhD (1998-2012), Emil Pfitzer, PhD (1995-1998), Richard Ford, PhD (1983-1995), Donald Opdyke, PhD (1970-1983), and Thomas Parks, PhD (1966-1970).