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Stewardship and Integrity
Overseeing Monsanto's work are many internal teams who vigilantly examine our research and development, products and processes to make certain that we are obeying the law, meeting Monsanto's high stewardship standards, and operating with integrity in accordance with our Pledge values.
Various teams focus on product stewardship from lab to field: financial stewardship to ensure that financial standards are met; environmental, safety and health stewardship to protect the safety of our people, communities and the environment; and societal engagement to consider whether we are doing the right things and doing them right.
Product Stewardship
We take the stewardship of our products seriously. Product stewardship is the legal,
ethical, and moral obligation to ensure that our products and technologies are safe
and environmentally responsible. It is a component of Product Life Cycle Stewardship,
which includes product introduction, stewardship of products in the marketplace,
and effective discontinuation of outdated technology.
We are expanding and integrating our various global product stewardship efforts as we meet the challenge of an increasing number of biotechnology trait launches around the world. In 2005, we formed a stewardship operations team and created regional stewardship teams that are adapting our stewardship processes to their local situations.
Over the past two years, we established the requirement for a product stewardship checklist for each new product launch, verifying that stewardship milestones are met throughout the product life cycle. Completion of the checklist helps confirm that our stewardship processes are followed and documented before launch.
Stewardship is the shared responsibility of Monsanto, our licensees, and our grower customers. We want to ensure that our products continue to be used properly. By following product life cycle stewardship processes, we stand behind our products from start to finish.
Stewardship of Agricultural Herbicide Products
Responsible development, manufacture, and use of agricultural herbicide products
such as Roundup agricultural herbicide is important to us. Monsanto subscribes to
the principles of the American Chemistry Council Responsible Care Program, the Responsible
Care Global Charter, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides.
We have policies in place to monitor our procedures as we research, develop, design, manufacture, market, and dispose of chemical products scientifically evaluated for product safety and benefits, are used properly, and do not pose undue risks to human health or the environment during any stage of their life cycle.
We conduct product risk assessments in many areas: toxicology, medical risks, regulatory approvals, environmental impact, safety, health, quality, marketplace stewardship, sales and marketing, and public relations aspects. Monsanto chemical products are regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, and other relevant agencies in the United States, and by similar agencies in other nations.
Labels and material safety data sheets for Monsanto's chemical products are available through the Monsanto website, www.monsanto.com.
Integrity Guides Our Business Conduct
The Monsanto Business Conduct Program raises employee awareness of the importance
of integrity. As our Code of Business Conduct notes, this program was designed not
merely to comply with the law, but to make certain that our actions reflect the
type of company we want Monsanto to be.
The Business Conduct Program helps guide our employees in doing the right thing. It offers several ways for employees to raise questions or concerns — even anonymously and in various languages. We have procedures for handling these questions fairly, and we receive several hundred each year.
Our Business Conduct Office collaborates with seven regional Business Conduct Working Groups. We also have a best-practices anti-bribery program, and robust, multilingual training programs featuring online modules, in-person presentations, and group discussions of business conduct case studies. Our website includes various handbooks and training materials. We revise and update these materials regularly. Annually, our employees must certify compliance with the code and explain any perceived lapses or violations of the policy.
Through these initiatives, the Business Conduct team helps all Monsanto employees embed integrity in all they do.
