Pallet Repair Issue – D A change of policy for the repair of wood packaging industry

Pallet Repair Issue D is Canada’s Wood Packaging policy and now allows a certified company to collect a pallet and repair all 12 broken boards without re- heat treating the whole unit. If a stringer is repaired and has the IPPC-ISPM 15 stamp lost, the unit must be re-heat treated. If the original stamp in unreadable the unit must be re-heat treated If the unit is from China, Taiwan, Malaysia, the unit may require reheat treatment. [the majority of EU, UK and USA do not allow replacement of boards for repair]

Repaired Wood Packaging The Reasoning! The CFIA believes that all international wood packaging, when manufactured, meets IPPC- ISPM 15 regulations. If a Canadian certified company replaces a broken board with a HT board the remaining unit continues to meet ISPM 15. Once repaired in this manner the Canadian wood packaging company must now assume responsibility of the whole unit by scrubbing the original company IPPC mark and replacing with their certification stamp.

Repaired Wood Packaging Traceability and integrity are key words to the Canadian Wood Packaging Certification Program. Since the start we have preached traceability of the lumber in the unit. Traceability is paramount if a trading partner requires a guarantee that our wood packaging does not carry quarantined pests. Integrity of our program is vital when trading with our global partners. Canada’s export program must be tops, not near the top but number one. We cannot survive if we fail to maintain our program to a high degree.

Repaired Wood Packaging As an industry executive, and the group who is now responsible for inspections in Canada, I believe that reheat treating the whole unit is 100% the best method. It protects the traceability and the integrity of Canada’s export wood packaging program BUT the CFIA believes that we as wood packaging professionals will accept that a high percentage of units do meet or surpass the requirements of IPPC-ISPM 15 and the replacement of boards with HT boards continues to promote traceability and the continued implementation of the ISPM 15 policy.

The struggle with the new policy Inspection Problems Repair of IPPC-ISPM 15 unit you take responsibility. Policing this policy for CFIA will be very tough as the wood packaging repair Industry is somewhat of a cowboy industry – they do what they want until they get caught – there are few penalties to cheating.