Our Objectives

The success of aromatherapy and continuing consumer demand over the years has seen many new entrants into the market, including home start-up businesses, suppliers of essential oils, aromatherapists making products for their clients and the public and established retailers diversifying into the aromatherapy market with the majority of new and existing traders marketing their products on-line from their own websites or from one of the major on-line retailers.

With essential oils widely available under various forms of labelling and packaging, sometimes with insufficient regard for safety and many of poor quality, the most serious challenge to aromatherapy now comes from the suppliers of these products, rather than in the area of its professional practice. It was issues such as these that led to the formation of the ATC and that are still a source of considerable concern today.

To address these issues and remain focused, ATC continues to rely on the comprehensive list of objectives that were drawn up at its formation:

• Act as the lead body representing the interests of manufacturers and suppliers of essential oils and aromatherapy products
• Establish guidelines for safety, labelling and packaging for the aromatherapy trade
• Establish rules or guidelines for, and monitor, the advertising of aromatherapy products and essential oils in accordance with the law
• Promote the responsible use of aromatherapy products
• Initiate, support or sponsor research into all and any branches of knowledge which are pertinent and helpful to the continued free availability of essential oils and aromatherapy products
• Publish a register of the names and contact details of the current membership

No other aromatherapy trade association has ever attempted to do what the ATC set out to achieve in terms of self-regulation, largely due to the huge complexity created by ever-changing legislation and the costs incurred in monitoring and implementing it.

As the UK’s authoritative body for the aromatherapy essential oil industry, the ATC is committed to promoting high standards in the supply of essential oils and aromatherapy products to professional and industrial users and to the general public, and will continue to address these issues in future.