Amount of pesticides used during the reporting period on land area directly controlled by the organization.
Pesticide Use (OI9891)
- Reporting Format Unit of Measure (PD1602)
- Metric Type Metric
- Metric Level Organization
- IRIS Metric Citation IRIS, 2021. Pesticide Use (OI9891). v5.2.
Footnote
Organizations should footnote the classification of pesticides used by hazard level, as listed by the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Acute Toxicity Hazard Categories. Organizations should also footnote the source of data. See glossary term and usage guidance for further information.
Usage Guidance
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This metric is intended to capture the quantity of pesticides used during the reporting period on land directly controlled by the organization. Pesticide use refers to the use of insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, disinfectants, and any other substance intended to prevent, destroy, attract, repel, or control any pest, including unwanted species of plants or animals, during the production, storage, transport, distribution, and processing of food, agricultural commodities, and animal feeds that may be administered to animals for the control of parasites.
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Organizations can refer to the glossary for additional information on pesticide use and the WHO Acute Toxicity Hazard Categories. Organizations that use WHO Class Ia (extremely hazardous) and Ib (highly hazardous) pesticides should footnote additional details on the relevant land (for example, area applied and crops present) and pesticide use.
Impact Categories & Themes
SDG Goals & Targets
Zero Hunger
- SDG Target 2.1
- SDG Target 2.3
- SDG Target 2.4
Clean Water and Sanitation
- SDG Target 6.6
Decent Work and Economic Growth
- SDG Target 8.1
- SDG Target 8.2
Responsible Consumption and Production
- SDG Target 12.3
- SDG Target 12.4
Life on Land
- SDG Target 15.1
- SDG Target 15.4
Metric History
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June 2025 - IRIS+ v5.3b Released (current version)
No change.
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December 2024 - IRIS+ v5.3a Released
No change.
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June 2022 - IRIS+ v5.3 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revision to usage guidance for clarity.
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May 2021 - IRIS+ v5.2 Released
No change.
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January 2020 - IRIS+ v5.1 Released
No change.
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May 2019 - IRIS+ v5.0 Released
No change.
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March 2016 - IRIS+ v4.0 Released
Material change. Metric definition language and corresponding glossary term modified to increase generalization.
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March 2014 - IRIS+ v3.0 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revision to definition language for clarity.
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November 2011 - IRIS+ v2.2 Released
Immaterial change. Pesticide Use (OI9891) replaced Agrochemicals Used (OI9891). Metric name modified to improve accuracy.
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February 2011 - IRIS+ v2.1 Released
No change.
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September 2010 - IRIS+ v2.0 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revision to definition language for clarity.
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September 2009 - IRIS+ v1.0 Released
New metric. Agrochemicals Used (A11) was developed via the Original IRIS Working Group.