Product safety and stewardship are an important part of our strategy. We comply with legal requirements, and our voluntary commitment and internal standards go beyond these in a variety of areas.
Material impacts, risks and opportunities and their interaction with strategy and business model related to consumers and end-users [S4.SBM-3]
Through our double materiality assessment, we identified several impacts associated with the social inclusion of consumers and/or end-users, the personal safety of consumers and/or end-users, and information-related impacts for consumers and/or end-users. We manage these impacts through comprehensive policies and actions that are explained in the following chapter. All consumers and end-users who benefit from these impacts and/or could be affected are taken into account here.
The following consumer and/or end-user groups are considered in this chapter:
Consumers and/or end-users of products that may inherently have the potential to be harmful to people and/or to increase the risk of chronic diseases
Consumers and/or end-users of services that potentially negatively impact their rights to privacy, protection of their personal data, freedom of expression and nondiscrimination
Consumers and/or end-users who are dependent on accurate and accessible product- or service-related information, such as manuals and product labels, to avoid the potentially damaging use of a product or service
Consumers and/or end-users who are particularly vulnerable to impacts on their health or privacy or to the effects of marketing and sales strategies, such as children or financially vulnerable individuals
In our Crop Science Division, we market our products primarily via external sales partners or directly to farmers. Smallholder farmers in particular play a major role in global agriculture and food security, as they often feed much of the local population in their respective regions. We understand that the challenges these farms must contend with are different from those facing larger commercial farming enterprises. Their yields are often lower, for example, because they often have no access to high-quality crops, markets and practical knowledge about safer, more productive and environmentally friendly cultivation methods. Our positive impacts can affect smallholder farmers in particular; for example, we can help improve local socioeconomic conditions by improving access to products and services.
At Pharmaceuticals, our prescription products are primarily distributed to customers through wholesalers, pharmacies and hospitals. Consumer Health products are generally sold to our customers through pharmacies and pharmacy chains, supermarkets, online retailers and other large and small retailers. Patient groups with an increased risk are groups of people who have a higher health risk and a higher likelihood of being unrepresented, for example in clinical trials, due to various factors. We understand that pregnant women and nursing mothers, children, minorities, people with disabilities, people with rare diseases and senior citizens may be among these groups.
Our potential negative impacts can occur in a systemic or individual context. One example of systemic potential impacts would be if we were to negatively influence the affordability of pharmaceutical products due to high prices. Individual incidents could also occur due to the improper use of products by end-users. We recognize that financial risks can arise due to negative impacts, such as regulatory restrictions resulting from the improper use or misuse of crop protection products. The counterfeiting or imitation of Bayer products can lead to the sales revenue losses and loss of reputation. Opportunities from our positive impacts can also result in connection with consumers and end-users, such as the development of new business models focused on demographic change and the effects that climate change has on health, as well as the use of scientific breakthroughs for innovative therapies in the pharmaceutical industry.
We contribute to the well-being and safety of consumers and end-users by striving to improve access to information, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and providing clear instructions on the correct use of our products through suitable packaging. We also positively impact women’s health, gender equality and socioeconomic development by improving the availability of contraceptives. As access to everyday healthcare and self-care is still insufficiently developed in many communities, due to various factors including financial obstacles, we help to ensure with our product offerings that people in underserved communities in particular have access to self-care solutions in order to improve their health outcomes and living conditions. Our Crop Science Division also offers solutions that help our customers deal better with challenges. For example, we help to improve food security through the availability of seeds and affordable food products and promote digitalization and the use of innovative technologies in agriculture.