How to join
3 steps toward getting you product or service approved by Sensitive Choice
Step 1: Panel review process
Before a product or service is approved by Sensitive Choice it is rigorously reviewed by our independent expert panel.
The Product Advisory Panel considers whether the product or service is suitable to carry the Sensitive Choice blue butterfly.
Panel members can include:
- An allergist
- A chemist
- An engineer
- A general practitioner
- A pharmacist
- An epidemiologist
- A respiratory physician
The Panel reviews evidence to determine that a product or service is not harmful and demonstrates a potential benefit for people with asthma or allergies, before making a recommendation.
Step 2: Application process
Through a formal application process, applicants must:
- Complete the application form and supply as much credible evidence as possible to substantiate the asthma/allergy benefit or claim.
- Provide samples of each product (where requested).
- Provide a full list of ingredients for all products containing chemicals.
- Demonstrate full compliance with all relevant Australian or New Zealand laws, regulations and applicable standards.
In addition, prospective applicants should note:
- Applicants must be able to demonstrate that their product or service is not harmful and that there is research or evidence to demonstrate a potential benefit for people with asthma and/or allergies.
- Each product or service is assessed and considered by an independent (and voluntary) Product Advisory Panel.
- The Sensitive Choice® program is not a standards-based certification program. It is a marketing/certification program whereby products that have been approved by the Product Advisory Panel may be eligible to join the program subject to completion of a licensing agreement and payment of an annual licence fee (on a partner basis, this fee is not less than $6,000 in Australia, $4,000 in New Zealand, and negotiated for other countries on a case by case basis).
- Some categories are exclusive (or have limits) – this may prevent the admission of products into the program that would otherwise be acceptable.
- Participation in the Sensitive Choice® program does not represent that the product or service is the best or better than others in a category, simply that the product is acceptable and not harmful based on the evidence available.
To learn more about the program or to discuss whether your product/service may be suitable, please contact:
The Sensitive Choice Program Manager
Australia +61 03 9929 4333
New Zealand +64 0800 758 935
Step 3: Contract process
If a product or service is recommended for participation in the Sensitive Choice® program by the Product Advisory Panel, the National Asthma Council Australia may offer the applicant an opportunity to participate in the program by negotiating a Participation and Sponsorship Agreement with annual fees. The contract may be exclusive or non-exclusive, at the discretion of the Council.
Participation in the Sensitive Choice® program indicates that the National Asthma Council Australia has assessed the product/service and considers that it is a sensitive choice for people with asthma and allergies based on the evidence provided. Participation does not mean that the product/service is necessarily the best or only product/service available.