As biotech companies innovate at speed to boost sustainability and cost-efficiency, public policy can support, stall—or sometimes derail their progress. People who are adept at shaping perception, policies, and rules, as well as ensuring implementation, are vital partners in scientific achievement.
Enter IFF’s Global Public Affairs and Regulatory Affairs teams. These experts bring the company’s scientific, legislative, and regulatory know-how into the rooms where policy decisions are made. Together, they cover policymaking from inception through compliance and beyond.
It’s a partnership. Our teams bring IFF insights and expertise to policy stakeholders at the right times and places,”
SYLVIA AGUILERA
Vice President of Global Public Affairs, IFF Health & Biosciences
Aguilera, who operates out of Washington, D.C., and her global team serve as a conduit to IFF leaders, forecasting trends, policies, and issues that impact business strategy. Led by Deb Martin, the Home and Personal Care (HPC) Regulatory Affairs team is made up of technical experts who work with regulators and industry associations as regulations are written or revised. They also manage compliance. Both teams monitor the landscape, anticipating any development restrictions that could fuel or stunt innovation. In short, they contribute their scientific integrity, credibility, and expertise to the conversation.
“We do a lot of post-market surveillance on regulations impacting our products and technology. In this ever-changing global regulatory landscape, you have to constantly monitor new developments and address threats to mitigate risks early,” says Martin, Global Regulatory Affairs Director, IFF.
We innovate to give our customers an edge from a value, performance, and sustainability perspective.
IFF is committed to finding that sweet spot—delivering breakthrough solutions that perform, are safe, and advance sustainability, all while keeping costs in check. Public policy is critical to bringing industry solutions forward.”
ANA MARIA BRAVO,
Director Public Affairs for EMEA
The Global Public Affairs and Regulatory Affairs teams each play a critical role in the policy development lifecycle. Together, they advocate for IFF to a range of stakeholders.
These teams help the business in three practical ways:
We play a critical role early during product commercialization, ensuring that launches proceed smoothly and that all products fully meet compliance and safety requirements.”
DEB MARTIN,
Director of Global Regulatory Affairs, HPC
Enzymes’ proven safety record spans more than 50 years. That’s why it was important for the Public Affairs and Regulatory teams to highlight their benefits when regulation revisions in Europe threatened to limit their use in detergent products (and elsewhere). Since enzymes are considered respiratory sensitizers and could pose an allergenic risk, a wide-reaching hazard classification made them vulnerable to a 2026 expected revision to the EU REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals) regulation—as well as to the revision of the EU Detergent regulation (EC) No 648/2004.
The teams developed a plan around the compelling case for enzymes. They cited how enzymes clean at lower temperatures, reduce chemical usage, save energy across home and fabric care, and extend the longevity of clothes. This advocacy work is ongoing.
Create an awareness campaign through the Association of Manufacturers and Formulators of Enzyme Products (AMFEP), the teams conduct meetings with policymakers showing enzymes as contributors to EU’s goals on competitiveness and circularity. They highlight the benefits of enzymes in applications such as lower temperature washing.
Reinforce that enzymes are safe and exempt them from the scope of any restrictions on respiratory sensitizers under REACH and other policies.
Integrate ‘enzymes’ into broader EU policies & strategies and priorities such as bioeconomy strategy, biotech act, circular economy, and biomanufacturing. The teams position enzymes as drivers of EU competitiveness and business growth.
Mobilize partners for industry unity and policy influence, by collaborating with detergent and enzyme manufacturers and wider industry associations. They hold joint meetings and briefings with EU Parliament, EU Member States, and the EU Commission.
Launch a social media campaign that is stakeholder-facing, to amplify their narratives and build support.
In 2025, enzymes were successfully defended as sustainable and safe to use under the detergents regulation. Now, IFF’s HPC customers can continue to deliver safe and innovative detergent products to consumers.
“Because the EU does not yet have tailored approaches for regulating biological solutions (biosolutions), enzymes are regulated like chemicals, overlooking their sustainability benefits. Our job is to show across all policies, including the upcoming REACH revision, the real-world tradeoffs of getting this wrong,” says Bravo, who is based in Brussels.
Similar conversations are happening in Washington, D.C., where the team also prioritizes policies based on how they will help or hinder innovations to market, policymakers’ goals, and consumer demand for more efficient, safer products.
Both teams are integrated inside the Health and Biosciences Unit, so they can better plan and serve business ambitions and support customers’ policy objectives. IFF positions itself as a trusted, solutions oriented partner that operates at the global, national, and local level.
As part of their advocacy, members of the Public Affairs team have organized opportunities for members of Congress to tour IFF facilities to showcase their work, and for company subject matter experts to speak directly with legislators on Capitol Hill. The Regulatory Affairs team also anticipates any proposed regulation changes, especially since inconsistent state rules can make compliance difficult and raise costs for customers and consumers, says Martin, who is based in California.
It’s rare that wins show up with a trophy or tied up in a bow. Our wins can be a successful conversation, a door that we’ve opened, an invitation to weigh in, an insight we received from a stakeholder.”
SYLVIA AGUILERA
Vice President of Global Public Affairs, IFF Health & Biosciences
Advocate for science-based, risk-focused reforms that streamline EPA’s review process while maintaining strong health and environmental protections.
Push for clearer definitions of critical terms to reduce uncertainty and improve compliance.
Ensure reforms allow timely approval of sustainable, high-performing products without compromising safety.
Lead strategy and communications in industry coalitions, engaging policymakers on both sides of the aisle to build bipartisan support.
The complex policy and regulatory environment can make the unlikeliest bedfellows.
IFF’s team calls it “coop-etition,” where competitors work together in trade associations to ensure the issues impacting the small yet essential sector don’t get overlooked. And while these rivals might not follow the same party line, they have similar goals, such as boosting market access for biosolutions.
IFF is a founding member of the American Alliance for Biomanufacturing, made up of companies with focused policy recommendations designed to grow U.S. competitiveness and resiliency. The ability to work with diverse stakeholders is critical.
“We don’t arrive at policy discussions as if we have all the answers. From product development to how we engage with stakeholders, we show up with the IFF culture and mindset of collaboration. Co-creation makes for better outcomes, in partnerships, products, and public policy,” says Aguilerra.
So, what’s on the horizon from an advocacy standpoint?
IFF’s aim is to advocate for smarter and effective policies that encourage innovative biosolutions to meet future societal needs.
Biobased sectors lack the incentives they need to compete with the fossil-based industry, even though they’re key to competitiveness, resilience, sustainability, and food security. IFF wants to close that gap.
Having people on the ground changes everything. It means we’re not reacting from a distance—we’re building relationships locally and helping shape workable solutions that can scale across regions.
Heidi Werner Vedel
Regulatory Affairs Manager, EMEA
IFF’s advocacy experts don’t just react to regulations, they proactively shape policies that drive innovation, sustainability, and safety. They remove barriers, anticipate challenges, coordinate communications, educate stakeholders, and ensure compliance. They’re building coalitions and holding court with policymakers.
They’re also navigating shifting political climates. For instance, in the U.S., they are adapting messaging to address the bipartisan interest in competitiveness and how it intersects with IFF’s sustainability goals. Meanwhile, across the EU, they’re working with associations, coalitions, and allies to ensure that their narratives resonate across key EU countries, whatever their national political nuances.
In the end, the teams shape science-backed policies that meet customer needs while having a positive effect on society.
“Progress isn’t always a headline—but it’s critical for enabling policies, changed perspectives, and real-world impact,” says Bravo.
