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Updated Product Categories In This Calculator (Jul 2021)

By Holly

Per the sweeping updates made by the IFRA 49th Amendment to the IFRA Standards, this calculator has updated its product categories to map to the new/expanded/changed IFRA categories.

If you are looking for reasons why your favorite blend had a massive change in use, see our post: Why Did My Usage Rate Change?

The updated categories are as follows:

Alcohol Based Perfume & Cologne (Category 4)

  • Usage Rates: 5% to 25%
  • Use for products like: any perfume product that is diluted with an alcohol base, including aftershave.

Children’s Products (Category 5D)

  • Usage Rates: 0.2% to 1%
  • Use for products like: any product intended for use by children or infants, such as baby creams, baby lotions, baby oils, powders, etc.

Cold Process Soap (Category 9)

  • Usage Rates: 1% to 5%
  • Use for products like: cold process soaps
  • Important: for usage rate calculations, use the amount of oil in the recipe – not the total amount of oil, water, and lye

Deodorant (Category 2)

  • Usage Rates: 0.25% to 1.25%
  • Use for products like: deodorant or antiperspirant sprays, roll-ons, sticks, etc.

Eye Products (Category 3)

  • Usage Rates: 0.2% to 1%
  • Use for products like: products intentionally applied to the eye area of any adult, such as eye shadow, mascara, eyeliner, eye makeup, eye masks, eye pillows, etc.

Facial Products (Category 5B)

  • Usage Rates: 0.2% to 1%
  • Use for products like: facial creams, facial oils, oil cleansers, beard oils, beard balms, facial make-up such as foundation, and facial masks

Hand Creams & Sanitizers (Category 5C)

  • Usage Rates: 0.5% to 1.5%
  • Use for products like: body creams, butters, lotions, sprays, oils, foot care products, hair spray, body paint, etc. (basically, any product for adults that does not fit in another category and is applied in a leave-on manner)

Hair Styling Products (Category 7)

  • Usage Rates: 0.2% to 1%
  • Use for products like: non-spray head-hair styling products such as creams, mousses, gels, and leave-in conditioners for adults

Hot Process Soap (Category 9)

  • Usage Rates: 1% to 3%
  • Use for products like: hot process and cream soaps
  • Important: for usage rate calculations, use the amount of oil in the recipe – not the total amount of oil, water, and lye

Household & Cleaning Products (Category 10)

  • Usage Rates: 0.5% to 2.5%
  • Use for products like: laundry detergents, fabric softeners, fabric cleaners, soft surface cleaners, carpet cleaners, dishwashing detergents, hard surface cleaners, etc.

Insect Repellents (Category 5A)

  • Usage Rates: 1% to 9%
  • Use for products like: topically applied insect repellents for adults

Leave-On Body Products (Category 5A)

  • Usage Rates: 0.5% to 1.5%
  • Use for products like: body creams, butters, lotions, sprays, oils, foot care products, hair spray, body paint, etc. (basically, any product for adults that does not fit in another category and is applied in a leave-on manner)

Lip Products (Category 1)

  • Usage Rates: 0.25% to 1.25%
  • Use for products like: any product applied to the lip area, such as lip balm, lipsticks, lip wax, etc.

Melt and Pour Soap & Liquid Soap (Category 9)

  • Usage Rates: 0.5% to 2.5%
  • Use for products like: melt and pour soap, liquid soaps and cleansers

Mouthwash & Toothpaste (Category 6)

  • Usage Rates: 0.1% to 0.5%
  • Use for products like: any product used inside a adult’s mouth, including toothpaste, mouthwash, and breath spray

Non-Skin Contact Products (Category 12)

  • Usage Rates: 5% to 11%
  • Use for products like: any product intended for usage in a non-skin contact fashion, such as air fresheners, candles, deodorizers, reed diffusers, shoe polishes, toilet blocks, textile sprays, fabric starch, room sprays, etc.

Oil Based Perfume (Category 5A)

  • Usage Rates: 1% to 3%
  • Use for products like: any perfume or cologne product that is diluted with an oil base, such as roll-on perfumes for adults.

Facial Shaving Products (Category 5B)

  • Usage Rates: 0.25% to 2%
  • Use for products like: any product topically applied to skin intended for use on a man’s face

Solid Perfume (Category 5A)

  • Usage Rates: 2% to 10%
  • Use for products like: any perfume or cologne product that is prepared in a solid base.

Wash-Off Products (Category 9)

  • Usage Rates: 0.5% to 2%
  • Use for products like: any product that is intended to be washed off that is not a soap, such as bath gels, bath foams, bath mousses, bath oils, bath bombs, bubble bars, bath salts, body washes, body scrubs, shampoos, conditioners, foaming facial cleansers, shaving creams, shaving soaps, shaving gels, etc.

This calculator does not include Category 8 (genital wipes) or Category 11 (feminine hygiene) products.

We encourage you to regularly check that your products, blends and formulations are compliant with current guidelines. As always, this information provided on this calculator are to help steer product makers in the right direction. You alone are responsible for any products you create using this information.

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Important Note: The information provided within the essential oil blending calculator is for educational purposes only. While Essentially Speaking, LLC has made every effort to verify the information presented, the data is not guaranteed to be accurate or complete and should only be used as a guideline. Every essential oil contains natural variations from crop to crop, batch to batch, and cannot be accounted for in this calculator. It is your responsibility to use essential oils safely in accordance with common sense, research, training, and local regulations, as well as considering the constituents present that are unique to the essential oils you are using.

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