Heat Treated Pallets
Palletland offer heat treated pallets from large stocks on-site. International Standard
for Phytosanitary Measures ISPM15 guide for regulatory wood and wood packaging in international
trade. The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) Interim
Commission on Phytosanitary Measures adopted ISPM15 in March 2002.
This means that countries can now decide to implement these internationally
recognized import regulations to prevent the spread of wood pests. The new international mark has been agreed and trademarked and
is now authorized for use (see image below).
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Heat treatment (HT) to a minimum core temperature of 56oC for
a minimum of 30 minutes.
Fumigation, using Methyl Bromide (MB) to the prescribed dosage and
temperature.
To attest to compliance to the standard the pallet must be clearly
marked on 2 faces showing the official IPPC logo, a 2 letter country
code (xx), a unique number (000) assigned by the National Plant
Protection Organization (NPPO), HT for Heat Treatment or MB for
Methyl Bromide and DB to signify debarked.
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UK Forestry
Commission Wood Marking Programme
It is unclear when the use of the IPPC logo will be mandatory and
when some countries will stipulate its use. Members of the UK Forestry
Commission Wood Marking Programme are being advised to implement
the IPPC logo albeit remains optional. Marking pallets with the
NPPO stamp without the IPPC logo was a practice introduced by the
EU to enable re-import of pallets originating and treated in the
EU, back from the USA, Canada, China and Japan. The European Commission
introduced regulations 1 October 2001 to control the importation
of wood packaging from these countries, these regulations are still
in force requiring pallets to be HT or MB treated.
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The current position regarding implementation of the international
regulations is; New Zealand has announced (April 2003) new regulations
that include acceptance of pallets that comply with ISPM15.
Republic of Korea has issued formal notice to implement ISPM15.
China will only accept wooden pallets stamped DB-HT or DB-MB with
the accompaniment of a phytosanitary certificate.
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The North American Plant Protection Organization (NAPPO), which
covers Canada, USA and Mexico, have announced these countries will
implement ISPM15 2 January 2004.
The EU is planning implementation in January 2004 and is expected
to publish its proposals in September/October this year.
Other countries that have not made clear their intent at this stage,
because import regulations differ depending on the exporting country.
Repair of ISPM15 Compliant Wood Packaging Material
Following repair, the entire item of wood packaging must be re-treated
and re-marked. This includes repaired, recycled and re-manufactured
wood packaging material. For example, pallets marked HT that are
repaired must be re heat treated in their entirety (i.e., the complete
pallet). The accreditation mark of the repairer must be applied,
and all previous ISPM15 marks must be removed.
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