Stewardship

Stewardship is a life cycle approach to product management. It is the responsible and ethical way to manage crop protection products from their discovery and development, to their use and the final disposal of any waste. The overall aim of the stewardship approach is to maximize the benefits, and minimize any risk, from using crop protection products.

Malaysian CropLife & Public Health Association (MCPA) in aligns with CropLife Asia and CropLife International, is committed to promoting effective stewardship in and beyond the field, and believes that the appropriate management and use of our products help underpin sustainable agriculture and safeguard the environment and public health. Stewardship underpins the International Code of Conduct on Pesticide Management*. MCPA and its member companies fully support the Code, adherence to which is a condition of membership of the national association. The Code is mainly, but not exclusively, aimed at those countries where good regulation or enforcement regulations are not fully developed or implemented. It is logically also in these areas where the challenges of stewardship, and measuring true impact (i.e. changes in behavior and practices) is greatest. The industry’s stewardship programs also recognize this challenge. Stewardship of crop protection products can be broken down into seven interrelated elements:

• Research and Development
• Manufacture of Products
• Transport, Storage and Distribution
• Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
• Responsible Use
• Container Management
• Obsolete Stock Management