The International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides is the worldwide guidance document on pesticide management for all public and private entities engaged in, or associated with, the distribution and use of pesticides. It was adopted for the first time in 1985 by the Twenty-fifth Session of the FAO Conference. The Code is designed to provide standards of conduct and to serve as a point of reference in relation to sound pesticide management practices, in particular for government authorities and the pesticide industry. Following the adoption of the Rotterdam Convention in 1998 and in view of the changing international policy framework, as well as the persistence of certain pesticide management problems, particularly in developing countries, in 1999 FAO initiated the update and revision process of the Code. In November 2002, the Hundred and Twenty-third Session of the FAO Council (with the authorization of the Thirty-first Session of the FAO Conference) approved the revised version of the International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides by Council Resolution 1/123. This publication contains the revised version of the Code.
