Responsible Care®

What is Responsible Care^®

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

Responsible Care^® envisages a profitable, sustainable chemical sector in South Africa that contributes to the quality of human life and the economy through innovation and production, without harm to people, property or the environment. Responsible Care^® aims to ensure that South Africa’s chemical sector is recognised by all stakeholders as a responsible industry playing an important role in bringing a wide range of benefits to society, while remaining open, honest and credible in all its dealings.

Under Responsible Care^®, the worldwide chemical industry is committed to continuously improve all aspects of health, safety and environmental performance and to open communication about its activities and achievements. It’s our commitment to sustainability – the betterment of society, the environment, and the economy. Through Responsible Care^®, CAIA member-companies strive to “do the right thing, even when no one is looking.” They innovate for safer and greener products and processes, and work to continuously improve their environmental, health and safety performance.

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.

RESPONSIBLE CARE^® FOCUS

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.

Responsible Care^® focuses on:

Disseminating good management practices;

Promoting mutual support among companies and associations;

Encouraging companies to keep their stakeholders informed about what they make and do, and about their performance (including annual reporting of performance data);

Helping the industry to engage and work with stakeholders at local, national, and international levels and listening to and addressing stakeholders concerns.

These objectives are achieved by means of legislative and regulatory compliance as a minimum standard and by adopting cooperative and voluntary initiatives with government and stakeholders.

The History

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 2015, membership stands at 161 signatories and 17 consultant members.

Since being launched in Canada more than 25 years ago, Responsible Care^® has expanded into a global movement, now practised in more than 60 countries around the world, and overseen by the International Council of Chemical Associations.

Responsible Care^® 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.