Faqs
PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) is a non-governmental, independent, non-profit and worldwide entity that promotes the sustainable management of forests in order to achieve a social, economical and environmental balance of them.
By choosing PEFC certified products, buyers can help fight illegal logging and encourage the main roles played by forest resources such as:
– Contributing to the maintenance of numerous ecosystems and biological diversity;
– Being the economic sustenance of many rural settlements and the source of a very important transformation industry;
– Having a social and cultural role that is increasingly acknowledged.
Certified PEFC wood makes it easier for companies using the product to reduce their Carbon Foorprint, an added reason to encourage the use of pallets with this certification.
You can find more information at www.pefc.es
The Wood Normative of the European Union (EUTR Normative (UE) Nº995/2010 from the European Parliament and the Council of October 20th 2010) bans the commercialization of illegal obtained wood. It includes the requirements that the EU companies must meet to minimize the risk of selling illegal wood, specially wood coming from tropical countries.
The Regulation demands:
- That companies selling wood or wooden products for the first time in the European market (imported as well as European) must set up a System of Due Diligence (SDD).
- That companies selling wooden products within the EU that have already been commercialized, keep a register of their suppliers and clients to facilitate the traceability of these products.
More information about the EUTR normative, at www.maderalegal.info
Is the international regulation for Phytosanitary Measures Nº 15 that regulates the wood packaging used in international commerce and that describes the phytosanitary measures to reduce the risk of introduction or dispersion of plagues related to wood packages.
The thermic treatment HT consists in the warming up of the wood in all its profiles, including the core of the wood, according to a specific time/temperature curve, where the wood must reach a minimal temperature of 56ºC during a minimum time of 30 minutes in a continuousway.
In the following link: http://www.magrama.gob.es/es/agricultura/legislacion/Legislacion-embalajes-madera.aspx you will find the current legislation regarding wood packaging.
At the same time, in this other link, you will find the frequent questions related to doubts about wood packaging and the NIMF 15 normative. http://www.magrama.gob.es/es/agricultura/preguntas-frecuentes/Preguntas-frecuentes-sanidad-vegetal.aspx
No. The marking of the packaging guarantees by itself that the treatment has been applied according to the NIMF nº 15 and no additional certificate.
Any preventive treatment isn’t a lifetime treatment. Any preventive treatment will only last as long as the pallet stays in the same conditions during storage, transference and use.
The Producer has got to be aware, treat right, get that pallet to the user in the right condition. But the user can’t assume that it’s a lifetime treatment. They have to also respect the fact that if you expose it to the wrong conditions it’s going to pick up moisture.
Mold needs several things to grow. It needs a food source, it needs the right temperature, it needs moisture content and it needs air.
The key to preventing mold grow is controlling one or more of these elements that mold needs to grow. Controlling air is virtually impossible, and controlling temperature is not easy either as the temperature range that is most comfortable for workers. So that leaves moisture and food source that can be controlled.
Many pallet users think that heat treating pallet helps prevent mold growth. But in reality, heat treatment is done to kills wood pests so that export pallets comply with ISPM 15 standard. It has a little to do with prohibiting mold growth unless the pallet is dried to less than 20% moisture content. The heat treating process can actually make wooden pallets or lumber more susceptible to mold, by bringing to the surface moisture and sugars that are necessary to facilitate mold growth.
One thing to keep in mind with chemical treatments, is that they are usually “envelope treatments” meaning they only treat the surface of the product. So if any cuts are made after the treatment, that “envelope” is opened, meaning that product would need to be re-treated.
If chemical treatments do not seem like the right fit for a pallet operation, drying the pallets may be. Drying for mold prevention is different than heat treating a pallet. Heat Treating gets pallets hot, but it does not dry them, as heat treatment standards are not designed for mold prevention. A moisture content below 20% is usually sufficient to prevent the mold growth on pallets, and heat treating according to ISPM 15 schedules will not reduce the moisture content to this level.
(Extract from the article by DeAnna Stephens Baker “Proven Strategies to inhibit mould growth on pallets”, published in the specialized magazine Pallet Enterprise, in the June 2013 issue)
