BIOCIDES
Ethanol-based disinfectants play an important role in maintaining hygiene standards in healthcare environments and supporting infection prevention measures
Ethanol at a regulatory crossroads
Nicole Vaini, advocacy director at Detergents Europe, examines how regulatory decisions on ethanol could affect biocides and other downstream industries.
Ethanol is so widely used that its importance is often taken for granted. Every day, millions of Europeans encounter ethanol-based products in hospitals, healthcare facilities, public transport, workplaces, schools, food production sites and even their own homes. As the active substance in countless hand and surface disinfectants and hygiene products, ethanol is an established component of infection prevention practices.
However, today ethanol stands at a crucial regulatory crossroads. Its regulatory status in the EU is now under review through two separate but related processes. The first concerns approval as an active substance under the Biocidal Products Regulation( BPR). The second concerns the possibility of additional harmonised
NOV / DEC 2026 SPECCHEMONLINE. COM
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