Heat Treated Pallets
ISPM15 - International Phytosanitary Standard for Wood Packaging
We are able to offer customers the latest heat treatment services to: ISPM15 "International Phytosanitary Standard for Wood Packaging".
PH Pallets has the ability to process thousands of heat-treated pallets to ISPM15 every week using our state-of-the-art onsite kilns, purpose-built for new or recycled pallets.
Certificates are always produced to show a full audit trail.
See our Pallet News section for the latest ISPM15 Global Updates (click here)
There
has been increasing concern in recent years about the spread
of pests, such as the Asian long-horn beetle and the Pine Wood
Nematode, since wood packaging material made of unprocessed
raw wood provides a pathway for the introduction and spread
of such pests. A few years ago there was a major incident, when
the Asian long-horn beetle was discovered in the U.S.
Having
made its way there in the wood packaging imported from China,
with the result that avenues of trees in Chicago and New York
had to be immediately felled so as to control the spread of
this pest.
The pest has not yet been eradicated and felling continues.
It has also been intercepted in imports in many other countries,
including the UK.
In order to protect their trees and forests, a number of countries
and trading blocs have taken regulatory action to control the
import of wood packaging. At the present time, at least fourteen
countries and the EU have taken such action, and the regulations
differ in each case, with the results that exporters are finding
it extremely difficult to understand the regulations that apply
when exporting to such countries. A case in point, is Australia,
which requires tanalising or specific heat treatment of wood
packaging, and there are many other specific regulations, such
as those applicable to Argentina and Brazil. In an endeavour
to bring some order to this situation and to control the spread
of pests through wood packaging, the Secretariat of the IPPC
(International Plant Protection Convention), appointed a panel
of experts to identify approved measures that significantly
reduce the risk of the spread of pests, and to prepare an appropriate
standard. The International Standard for Phytosanitary Measure
“Guidelines for regulating wood packaging material in the
international trade” (ISPM15)
was adopted by the FAO’s Interm Commission on Phytosanitary
Measures in March 2002. It is now for each country and trading
bloc to decide upon implementation of these measures, and the
indications are that most major trading nations will have regulations
based on ISPM15 in place
within the next couple of years.
The
approved measure that have been adopted are as follows:
• Heat treatment of wood packaging which requires heating
of the timber to a minimum core temperature of 56 ?C for a minimum
of 30 minutes (HT)
• Fumigation, using Methane Bromide (MB) to the relevant
specification. ISPM15 also recommends that wood should be debarked
prior to treatment by an approved measure (DB).
In
order to prepare the U.K. wood packaging industry, and to assist
exporters, the Forestry Commission introduced the U.K. Wood
Packaging Material Marking Programme, on 1st October 2001. The
Programme is entirely voluntary at present but in time it will
become statutory. P.H.Pallets meet the required standards and
have been authorised to use the ISPM15 mark which identifies the country by the ISO-2-letter code (GB),
a unique manufacture’s registration number 0092 assigned
by the Forestry Commission, the code for the approved measure
DB-HT and the Forestry Commission ©. ISPM15 recommends that countries need not impose regulations on neighbouring
countries with a similar plant health status, nor on internal
movements. However, it is up to each country to determine its
own regulations. But it is expected that within the EU domestic
movements, within and between the Members States will not be
subject to ISPM15 measures
and that existing requirements for import into the U.K., for
example which requires freedom from bark or kiln-drying, will
continue. However, companies that operate in global markets
may wish nevertheless to source heat treated or fumigated pallets,
in order that they have the option to send pallets outside the
EU, or to ensure that they can be re-imported.
Due to concerns
about Pine Wood Nematode found in wood packaging material shipped
from USA, Canada, China and Japan, the European Commission introduced
regulations to control the import of wood packaging with effect
from 1st October 2001. Wood packaging coming into the EU from
these four countries has to be either heat treated, chemically
impregnated, or fumigated, and clearly stamped, stating where
and by whom the treatment was carried out. If wood packaging
is used to export goods from within the EU to one of these four
countries, they can only be re-imported if it can be proved
that they originated from within the EU. The U.K. Forestry Commission
stamp is, is therefore a very valuable safeguard in this circumstance.
Of course, once the International Standard for Wood Packaging
has been implemented by the EU, then the pallets coming into
the EU (from any source) will have to be stamped that they have
been produced from Debarked wood and had one of the two approved
treatments. Ie. DB-HT or DB-MB.
Work is going
on within FEFPEB (the European Association of Wooden Pallet
and Packaging Manufacturers) – to encourage the introduction
of Programmes similar to the U.K. Wood Packaging Material Marking
Programme throughout Europe. Only wooden pallets and packaging
stamped “DB-HT” or “DB-MB” will meet the
current Chinese regulations (with the accompaniment of a Phytosanitary
Certificate from the FC) and ISPM15 (No Phytosanitary Certificate
required just the approved wood mark). Alternative measures,
such as Chemical Pressure Impregnation (CPI) or irridation may
be approved if sufficient scientific evidence of their effectiveness
can be proven. For the time being, only the two approved measures
may be used. Although the necessary introduction of Phytosanitary
regulations will inevitably lead to an increase in the cost
of wooden pallets and packaging, this increase will still result
in wood packaging being considerably cheaper than alternatives,
such as plastic packaging. The latest development is that Canada
has announced its intention to adopt ISPM15,
with effect from 1st June 2003. New Zealand has announced (April
2003) new regulations including acceptance of wood packaging
material complying with ISPM15. The USA and EU have indicated
that they will soon follow, and it is highly likely that most
other nations and trading blocs will implement ISPM15 in the near future. It is, therefore, imperative to all USERS
and PURCHASERS of wooden packaging that they PLAN NOW, so as
to ensure that their wood packaging used in future shipments
is fully compliant with the regulations. There are major logistical
and supply line issues to consider.
ISPM15 applies to all wooden packaging, including pallets (either new
or repaired), packing cases dunnage. The early introduction
of the UKWPMMP has ensured that U.K. wood packaging suppliers
are organised to meet your requirements and guarantee the uninterrupted
supply of packaging essential to the U.K.’s export trade.
Although there are inevitable increased costs for the treatment
of packaging, in order to protect the world’s forests and
environment, it remains the case that wood packaging is considerably
more economical and is flexible enough to meet exporters’
packaging requirements.
Global
guide to ISPM15 implementation and import regulations for wood
packaging materials. Release Date for this information:
See news section for latest ISPM15 Global Updates (click
here)
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.
ISPM15 - International Phytosanitary
Standard for Wood Packaging
We are able to offer our customers the latest ispm15
heat treatment services to: ISPM15 "International Phytosanitary
Standard for Wood Packaging" PHPallets have the ability to process thousands of heat treated pallets to ISPM15 every week due to our state of the art onsite kilns. See news section for latest ISPM15 Global Updates (click
here)
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