Colipa, the European cosmetics industry association, has issued a statement that it is eagerly anticipating the results of the Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) meeting that took place on Nov. 9, 2007 in Washington DC, USA. According to the association, the TEC aims to strengthen joint EU/American action on reducing regulatory barriers to trade, protecting intellectual property rights, ensuring secure trade, integrating financial markets, promoting innovation and technology and encouraging investment.
The TEC was created by EU and US leaders to foster transatlantic economic integration at the EU/US Summit in Washington in April 2007. The association feels that the TEC should place a priority on cosmetics and finds that this initiative can help to promote alignment of cosmetics regulations.
“The Cosmetics industry needs a global regulatory environment that allows innovation, secures competitiveness, recognizes and supports efforts in the field of science and research and actively contributes to consumer confidence.”, stated Bertil Heerink, director-general of Colipa in a recent press release.
Specifically, Colipa finds alternatives to animal testing should be developed by the TEC, and ensures a need to intensify efforts internationally to ensure effective validation and acceptance of alternative testing methods. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Commission have agreed to cooperate more closely in the peer review of validation studies of alternative methods to animal testing for cosmetics, in order to contribute to reduce animal tests. The TEC process could potentially speed up the validation and acceptance of alternative methods internationally.
