IFEAT 2011 Barcelona Conference Report

IFEAT 2011 Barcelona Conference 6th – 10th November 2011

At 09.00 the Conference was officially opened by Ramon Bordas, with members of the IFEAT Executive Committee and Local Organising Committee alongside him. The rest of the morning was filled with four very diverse but excellent presentations. The first by the Ventos trading company, based in Barcelona, provided a detailed analysis of nine non-citrus Spanish essential oils. The presentation included three excellent video films showing the production, harvesting and processing of these Spanish oils. Then followed two global overview presentations. One was an analysis of the rapid shifts taking place in the global F&F industry based on discussions with many CEOs in the sector; the other an analysis of the changing outlook for fine fragrance creation. The final presentation of the morning was a detailed review of the world lemon oil sector, which was the first of several citrus related presentations. The whole afternoon was devoted to citrus oils with separate presentations on orange, lime, mandarin and bergamot oils. The first lecture day ended with a panel discussion on citrus oil developments. The second day of lectures concentrated on market and technical developments, as well as legislative and regulatory issues. The morning presentations included developments in chiral chemistry, new developments in natural flavours as well as a substantial, amusing and wide-ranging polemic on the “Age of Unreason”, with particular reference to the fragrance sector. As usual, the IFEAT AGM and Business Session took up the last session of the morning. At the AGM, IFEAT members voted on several items and two new Executive Committee members were elected: Jens-Achim Protzen from Germany and Jalal Charaf from Morocco. Other items during the Session included the Annual Review of IFEAT activities during the very successful past year. In addition, there were presentations on the fragrance and flavour courses supported by IFEAT. Best student medals were awarded to Alin Bosilcov (from Austria) who participated in the University of Plymouth fragrance course and Edgar Crisotomo (from New Zealand) on the University of Reading flavour course. Unfortunately only Alin was able to attend to receive his medal. Other presentations included a short review of the very successful Indonesian Study Tour which took place in July 2011, and presentations on the 2012 IFEAT Conference which will be held in Singapore in November 2012 and the Brazil Paraguay Study Tour in August 2012. Then followed the IFEAT Medal Lecture presented by Francisco Fernandez Alvarez- Castellanos, on the development of the Spanish aroma chemicals industry. The afternoon session was devoted to “Legislative and Regulatory Issues” with three excellent presentations followed by a Discussion Panel. Presentations were made on the challenges and opportunities ahead for fragrance ingredients; fragrance policy drivers in North America; and the implications of the newly implemented EU flavour regulations. The Annual IFEAT Dinner was held on the evening of the 8th at the magnificent Cavas Codoriu which dates back to 1551 and is still in family ownership. Dinner guests were taken by coach from the Hotel Arts directly to the dinner venue. Prior to the dinner, guests were able to take a 20-minute underground train ride through the cellars where some 100 million bottles of cava are stored. Following an excellent dinner, some superb local traditional musicians and flamenco dancers entertained guests. Wednesday saw the day of the Field Trip with visits to two world famous family-owned companies, the Torres Winery and Freixenet Cava Cellars. At both locations, participants were taken on guided tours to learn about the operations, taste the various products, and go on a train tour of the extensive cava cellars, storing in excess of 100 million bottles. Prior to an excellent lunch at Freixenet, delegates undertook an aromatic tasting session as well as watch some traditional dancing. Wednesday also saw the Flavour Workshop at which some 30 participants were guided by John Wright through various aspects of flavour developments, including natural, synthetic, creative and regulatory aspects. Also there was a practical session at which participants were challenged to use the information they had been given to formulate their very own flavour. The last day of the conference saw three further sessions and some eight presentations. These included lectures on various technical aspects of essential oils and antioxidants as well as developments in the Latin American fragrance market and essential oils in Paraguay. The afternoon session and discussion panel covered “Environmental and Sustainability Issues” with excellent presentations on sustainability issues relating to natural essential oils; biological pest control in citrus as an alternative to chemical pesticides; and the environmental footprint of essential oils and synthetic chemicals. The end of the 34th IFEAT Conference saw the Closing Banquet held at the renowned Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya. As guests arrived by coach they were welcomed by the Magical Fountain, a display of light and sound against the water fountain located at the base of the hill.