The BBC has an interesting story on bergamot growers in Calabria. Long an important ingredient in perfumery, bergamot is now often replaced with synthetic substitutes in fragrance:
…the oil does have one side-effect that has hampered its sales in recent years – if put on human skin and then exposed to sunlight it causes discolouring and burning. Faced with this consumer time bomb, companies turned to manufactured versions of the oil and prices have dropped. Last year a kilo of bergamot essential oil sold for 62 euros; today it goes for 45 euros.
The New York Times has a run-down on the celebrities who attended Monday night’s Fifi awards.
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The phototoxicity of bergamot is no news. That is why it is sold without the bergapten – the ingredient that causes this effect. It smels different (not as rich) but works fine. Bergamot is not the only oil that does it. However, most citrus oils are used in very small quantities in perfumes, and this is not as much as a concern for perfumes as it is a concern for scented products such as body lotions and massage oils. Lime is another phototoxic note and so is angelica.
Thanks A!