The six principles of Green extraction of natural products

Plant extraction processes have probably been used since the discovery and domestication of fire. Egyptians and Phoenicians, Jews and Arabs, Indians and Chinese, Greeks and Romans, and even the Mayans and Aztecs, all these civilizations possessed know-how in the art of extracting and using plants to obtain substances of interest for their cosmetics, perfumery, medicine, food, colors and building materials.

A number of bibliographical resources report on new solutions for cleaner, safer chemistry: green chemistry. The chemistry of the 20th century includes optimizing the efficiency and energy consumption of processes, recycling raw materials and by-products of chemical reactions, reducing the amount of final waste, and reducing the impact on health and the environment. The challenges of the 21st century for the protection of the environment and humanity in general, as well as the competitiveness of the global marketplace, call for breakthrough innovations rather than simple continuity. One solution would be a new "green plant chemistry" based on plants as raw materials, with values that are as much economic as they are responsible. But we need to innovate across the whole value chain, from plant cultivation and biorefineries to synthons that can be transformed according to the principles of green chemistry into medicines, plastics, ingredients, etc. An essential link in this chain is extraction, including the "detexturation" of plant matter, as well as the production of various metabolites.

The extraction industry has entered its "green" revolution or evolution, moving towards "plant eco-extraction". A definition and principles have been adopted thanks to a collective effort involving producers of plant raw materials, industrial extractors and purifiers, formulators of finished products, as well as academic researchers, competitive clusters and institutional bodies: "Eco-extraction is based on the discovery and design of extraction processes that not only reduce energy consumption, but also use alternative solvents and renewable plant resources, while ensuring the quality and safety of finished products for operators, consumers and our environment". This provided an opportunity to list the technological hurdles and challenges facing academics and manufacturers, to reflect on environmental impact assessment, the importance of labels and standards, the expectations of consumers, manufacturers and institutions, and also to consider future visions in a context of competitiveness and sustainable development.

This article presents the six principles of "eco-extraction of plants", which are not defined as imperatives to be applied, but as an approach to progress and innovation towards ecological, economical and competitive extraction. Each principle...