Pesticides and the Law > Pesticides Label

The Ingredient

 

All pesticides have to provide the active ingredient.

Example:

Active Ingredient:
      Glyphosate, isopropylamine salt . . . . . . . .0.96%
Other ingredients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99.04%
TOTAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100.00%

 

This ingredient label tells us that glyphosate is the active ingredient. This is what is actually doing the job. The glyphosate is in the isopropylamine salt formulation. Being formulated as a salt helps it to dissolve in water.

"Other ingredients" are the ingredients that are added to make the product either work better, store better, last longer, or make it easier to handle. These ingredients are often listed as "inert ingredients". Although these ingredients are not supposed to have pesticide activity by themselves, they can often increase the activity of active ingredient.

At present, the EPA does not require that manufacturers list these ingredients.

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