Monocolumn: The High Price Of Smelling Nice

Monocolumn is Monocle’s daily bulletin of news and opinion. Catch up with previous editions here.

The question “Did the earth move for you?” usually implies the end of a successful Valentine’s date but for spice farmers in Indonesia it isn’t a good thing at all. For those who cultivate the raw ingredients that fuel the global perfume industry, earthquakes are just one of a host of natural disasters that have devastated this year’s crops.

The bad news for Valentine’s Day is that natural aphrodisiacs, including clary sage and ginger oil, commonly used in fragrances, are facing shortages. In economic terms, this lays bare the fragility of supply chains in a globalised market. In terms of attracting a mate, it could take potential suitors back to the 1970s when fragrances were the preserve of the very rich. Fragrance brands are absorbing the costs for now, but if commodity prices remain high they will have no choice but to pass these on to the consumer.

This €5.9bn global industry relies on a complex network of suppliers from every continent to provide the myriad spices and essential oils that go into the perfume used in fine fragrances and household products. In recent years freak conditions have disrupted this volatile ecology and sent prices soaring.

“Like fine wines, fine fragrances use natural ingredients affected by microclimates in local growing regions and perfumers are used to sudden change changes in these conditions,” says Lisa Hipgrave, director of the International Fragrance Association UK. “However, there have never been this many strange weather conditions simultaneously causing shortages all over the world.”

To continue reading, click here.

Image by John Rohan

href=”http://www.statcounter.com/tumblr/”
target=”_blank”>