How to define green adjuvants

The concept 'green adjuvants' is difficult to define. This paper formulates an answer based on two approaches. Starting from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) definition for green chemistry, production-based and environmental-impact-based definitions for green adjuvants are proposed. According to the production-based approach, adjuvants are defined as green if they are manufactured using renewable raw materials as much as possible while making efficient use of energy, preferably renewable energy. According to the environmental impact approach, adjuvants are defined as green (1) if they have a low human and environmental impact, (2) if they do not increase active ingredient environmental mobility and/or toxicity to humans and non-target organisms, (3) if they do not increase the exposure to these active substances and (4) if they lower the impact of formulated pesticides by enhancing the performance of active ingredients, thus potentially lowering the required dosage of active ingredients. Based on both approaches, a tentative definition for 'green adjuvants' is given, and future research and legislation directions are set out.