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The bipyridylium herbicides are quaternary ammonium salts. Their mode of action is well understood and brought about by chemical changes that their di-cations undergo in plant cells. Little attention has been paid to the role of the anions, chloride and bromide in the products of the market. It is hypothesized that these anions will form strong acids concomitant with the chemical changes of the di-cations. Toxic effects in animals and humans, especially regarding skin, epithelia and eyes, might be due to occurring hyperacidity in affected cells. Therefore, a commercial product was transformed into a diacetate salt that was tested in comparative trials with respect to herbicidal activity and damage towards human monocytes. While the desired plant harming effect compared very favourably with the marketed product, the damaging result with human monocytes was substantially reduced. Keywords: Bipyridylium herbicides Acetate salt Reduced toxicity Human monocytes Herbicides, The scientific literature abounds in publications on the activity, mode of action, toxicity and other aspects of the so-called bipyridylium herbicides (also called quats) since their patenting and introduction on [...]