Industrial Drying & Sterilization - Pallet Treating Regulations

Look for the official IPPC logo on your pallets to ensure their compliance.

The spread of pests through raw wood packaging material poses an enormous threat to the health of plants worldwide. Very frequently, raw wood packaging material has not undergone sufficient treatment to remove or kill pests. This results in the spread of foreign pests, which can lead to the development of plant disease and possible eventual extinction of an entire species.

On October 1, 2001, the European Union implemented new phytosanitary restrictions on coniferous solid wood packaging material. The emergency measures were intended to halt the spread of the pinewood nematode, a microscopic eelworm that has killed many pine trees throughout Japan and China.

And on March 15, 2002, the United Nations developed its own criteria for wood packaging material. Through its International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), the UN approved a global pest management standard for coniferous and non-coniferous packaging materials including pallets, dunnage, and crates. All 144 member countries of the World Trade Organization are required to comply.

The new IPPC standard
- applies to all raw wood packaging
- requires treatment of both hardwoods and softwoods
- excludes engineered wood packaging
- specifies approved treatment methods
- mandates a universal mark be applied to wood packaging in compliance with the standard

The preferred method for treating wood packaging material is heat-treating, including kiln-drying. Other approved methods are chemical pressure impregnation (CPI) and methyl bromide (MB) fumigation; however, these methods render the wood non-recyclable and damage the ozone layer.

Associated Pallet, Inc. and Industrial Drying & Sterilization meet the standard.
While other pallet manufacturers are tooling their plants to meet the phytosanitary procedures,

- WE started heat treating and kiln drying pallets for the pharmaceutical industry in 1990.
- WE have the knowledge to answer your questions and the equipment to produce regulation compliant pallets immediately.
- WE are the first Kentucky facility to be accredited by the ALSC to heat treat pallets in accordance with the IPPC global standard and apply the Universal Stamp of certification.
- WE have the capability to kiln dry pallets. The process exceeds the minimum heat treating standard and makes pallets stronger and lighter. Bag bleed, mold and insect reinfestation are also eliminated.
- WE treat the unfinished pallet in-house, eliminating the cost incurred to treat pallet components, therefore assuring no problems with shipment procedures.
- WE manufacture bark free and specialty pallets.
- WE can increase your pallet warehousing capacity by providing van storage.

With Associated Pallet, Inc.'s 35-year experience in manufacturing custom built pallets and Industrial Drying & Sterilization's capabilities to kiln dry and heat treat pallets for international use, both companies together provide a single source for high quality dried pallets at an economical price.