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Product Stewardship
Product Stewardship
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Bayer CropScience lays the foundation for a responsible use of its products in a sustainable agriculture. |
Our contribution to the safe handling of our products
The principles observed by Bayer CropScience are based on the International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides issued by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). These principles cover the entire life-cycle of a product – from its discovery and development to its use and beyond. Programs and training to encourage the greatest possible care in handling crop protection products are part of the company’s business activities worldwide. They are designed to ensure that products from Bayer CropScience are used in a way that is safe for operators, the environment and consumers.
Product stewardship at Bayer CropScience basically pursues the following aims: to ensure that the best possible practices are observed and to maximize the benefits of using the product in order to gain the confidence of users and interest groups, and to minimize the potential risks for human health and the environment.
Responsible use of products – advantages for everyone concerned
Ethical aspects carry the same weight as ecological and economic considerations. Bayer Crop-Science’s Product Stewardship Program therefore incorporates all the main aspects of responsible product use. These are research, development, registration, manufacture, packaging, labeling, distribution, handling, application, storage and transportation – including empty product containers and the disposal of products and waste. Bayer CropScience exceeds the requirements of current legislation by far.
Product stewardship is also the responsibility and the task of each and every employee. This individual responsibility for specific aspects of the Product Stewardship Program is supported by company management. This enables the individual to ensure that our products are used correctly. Compliance with the principles is regularly reviewed.
We are convinced that our programs to promote responsible product stewardship pay dividends to all stakeholders in many ways. Farmers and their families can improve their living standards with-out exposing themselves to health risks. They can boost their yields and at the same time protect natural resources. Consumers all over the world are provided with sufficient quantities of safe and affordable food throughout the year.
Commitment to Stewardship Initiatives in Seeds & Traits
Bayer CropScience sets a high standard in customer care and stewardship and takes a responsible approach to product launches including those derived through plant biotechnology.
As a member of CropLife International (CLI), and the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) we adhere to initiatives including the CLI Product Launch Stewardship Guidance and BIO Product Launch Stewardship Policy. In addition, as members of “Excellence Through Stewardship®”, we have adopted stewardship programs also for product launch consistent with the ETS Guide to Product Launch Stewardship.
In advance of commercializing a plant biotechnology product, Bayer CropScience is committed to meeting applicable regulatory requirements in all countries where the product will be cultivated, and in key importing countries with functioning regulatory systems. These countries are identified by assessing the global markets and trade of the product using information available through the commodity value chain.
Additionally, Bayer CropScience routinely consults with and informs key stakeholders throughout the value chain regarding our research and development pipeline and product launch plans. Bayer also actively supports the development of initiatives designed to facilitate global trade and minimize trade disruptions that may result from asynchronous approvals of plant biotechnology products or incidental small amounts of biotech material in a commercial product (low level presence, LLP).
Programs and training – for efficient, careful and sustainable farming
The focus of our training activities is on advice and practical experience in optimizing the use of our products. These activities are intended to improve the quality and quantity of harvests and, specifically, to minimize the potential impact on people and the environment (e.g. on water re-sources, soil, the air and beneficial organisms). Resistance management strategies in the context of good agricultural practice and integrated pest management (IPM) are also included in the training programs.
Expired crop protection products
Bayer CropScience has been supporting various disposal programs for many years and provides financial, technical and human resources. The main focus is on activities carried out within the global association of the crop protection industry (CropLife International: www.croplife.org). Within this framework the company is working on ways of avoiding problems such as the accumulation of inventories.
One specific example is the Africa Stockpiles Programme (ASP). In August 2003 the companies which are members of CropLife pledged to support the Africa Stockpiles Programme with funding and expertise (www.africastockpiles.org). This project is being supported by various governments, the World Bank, the Food and Agricultural Organization, a number of non-governmental organizations and industry; designed to run for 15 years, its goal is to overcome the problem of expired crop protection products in continental Africa.
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