Responsible Care

1. What is Responsible Care:

Responsible Care is the chemical industry's own, unique initiative - a voluntary programme that helps it to raise its standards and win greater trust from the public.

Under Responsible Care, the worldwide chemical industry is committed to continual improvement in all aspects of health, safety and environmental performance and to open communication about its activities and achievements.

Responsible Care is more than a set of principles and declarations. Through the sharing of information and a rigorous system of checklists, performance indicators and verification procedures, it enables the industry to demonstrate how it has improved over the years and to develop policies for further improvement. In these ways, Responsible Care helps the industry to gain the trust of the public and to operate safely, profitably and with due care for future generations.

The initiative is essential in the reduction and elimination of risks and to the implementation of sustainable development.

In terms of international trade and the standards demanded regarding safety, health and environmental practices, it is a strategy for survival and growth, and for maintaining a competitive advantage.

2. RC focus:

RC focuses on improving performance and the spreading of good management practices; promoting mutual support between companies and associations; encouraging companies and associations to inform their stakeholders about what they make and do about their performance including reporting performance data; helping the industry to engage and work with stakeholders at local, national, and international levels and listening and addressing stakeholders concerns. It achieves this objective by meeting and going beyond legislative and regulatory compliance by adopting cooperative and voluntary initiatives with government and stakeholders. The RC Global Charter commits to adopting global RC core principles, commitment to advance sustainable development, continuous improvement and the reporting of performance, enhancing the management of chemical products worldwide (Product Stewardship) and addressing stakeholder expectations about the chemical industries activities and products.

3. RC in South Africa:

After a series of disasters in the chemical industry in the early 1980s, the Canadian Chemical Producers Association developed and launched the Responsible Care initiative in 1984 to bind members of the industry to a set of principles which would lead to continued improvement in health, safety and environmental performance. In 1985 the USA followed and by 2008, 53 countries had adopted the initiative.

Responsible Care was launched in South Africa in 1994 by the Chemical and Allied Industries' Association (CAIA), with 15 signatories. In 2008 this stands at 142 plus 12 Consultant members.

4. RC Logo and public Commitment:

In January 2009 the Responsible Care logo was extended to include the tagline "Responsible Care- Our Commitment to Sustainability". Sustainability is a top priority for Responsible Care and our members are encouraged to identify opportunities to contribute towards sustainable development.

All CAIA members have voluntarily signed a pledge at CEO level, committing to these guiding principles of Responsible Care. Hence, Responsible Care and CAIA playing their part towards saving the earth for future generations!