Innovation and sustainable partnerships with regulators were among the key topics discussed during the recent induction of the newly elected Board of Trustees of the Chamber of Cosmetics Industry of the Philippines (CCIP) held at the Discovery Suites Hotel in Ortigas City. The oath of induction was facilitated by Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s of the Philippines Center for Cosmetics and Household /Urban Hazardous Substances Regulation and Research (CCHUHSRR) Director Engr. Ana Trinidad Rivera, while the commitment pledge was led by FDA Director General (DG) Dr. Samuel Zacate.
This meeting also served as a courtesy call with Dr. Zacate, who openly engaged in a productive dialogue about the cosmetics industry’s concerns surrounding FDA regulations.
Dr. Zacate emphasized the importance of innovation for the Philippine cosmetics industry and said that he wants to empower companies by making regulations more enabling, while still complying with ASEAN principles.
“It’s a challenge that the FDA wants to help tackle with the local cosmetics industry,” says Dr. Zacate. He strongly champions the “F-Pop Initiative”, the agency’s project in collaboration with Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) Korea.
The goal is to promote “functional cosmetics” in order to make the local beauty industry more competitive in terms of product innovations in comparison to neighboring countries such as South Korea, China, and Japan. He also discussed plans for digitalization to maximize FDA’s e-portal in order to eventually migrate cosmetics and food registrations for automatic posting.
According to CCIP President, Christine Reyes, “It was a fruitful meeting. We see that the FDA recognizes the industry’s needs and pain points.” She looks forward to more constructive discussions and potential solutions with the FDA. Envisioning this to be the start of a more sustainable partnership between the cosmetics industry and the FDA.
The CCIP acts as a collective voice for the industry, advocating for favorable policies and regulations with government agencies like the FDA; helping ensure a more enabling environment for cosmetics businesses to operate and grow.
Besides FDA DG Dr. Samuel Zacate, FDA CCHUHSRR Director Engr. Ana Trinidad Rivera, and CCIP President Christine Reyes (Amway Philippines), others present in the meeting included FDA Attorney III Pamela Angeline Sevilla and FDA Office of the Director General Executive Assistant Daniella Nicole De Vera.
