Special treatment and labelling of wooden packaging material in accordance with the ISPM-15 standard

Wooden packaging material is wood or a wooden product made of untreated wood and is used in international traffic for the protection, fixation, support, and transportation of goods, and it includes pallets, supporting wood, crates, packaging blocks, reels, containers, load boards, and pallet frames.

The special post-processing of wooden packaging material is a process by means of which wooden packaging material is suitably treated with the help of heat or fumigation for the purpose of destroying harmful organisms and by means of which it is officially labelled in accordance with the ISPM-15 standard.

The methods for the special treatment of wood in accordance with the ISPM-15 standard are:

• heat treatment - HT

The heat treatment of wood is a process of heating wood until it reaches the prescribed lowest temperature for the prescribed minimum time. This is a heating process in a heat chamber with the international label HT that ensures that the wood is heated along its entire cross-section, including the wood centre, at a minimum of 56.0°C  for at least 30 minutes.   Suitable heat treatment also includes: kiln drying – KD, chemical pressure impregnation – CPI, or other types of treatment;

• dielectric heating - DH

Dielectric heating is the heating in a microwave chamber with the international mark DH that ensures that the wood, the smallest dimension of which does not exceed 20 cm, is heated along its entire cross-section, including the surface of the wood, at a minimum of 60°C for at least one minute, whereby the required temperature must be reached within 30 minutes from the beginning of treatment;

• methyl bromide treatment (fumigation) - MB

The fumigation of wood is the treatment of wood with a chemical substance (fumigant) that entirely or mostly fills and surrounds the wood in a gaseous cloud. In accordance with the standard, only methyl bromide may be used as a fumigant but its use is prohibited in the EU.

An official label according to the ISPM-15 standard is a stamp or an equally permanent label that is internationally recognised and is used with wooden packaging for the confirmation of its health status.

Wooden packaging material that is exported into a country that requires the fulfilment of requirements in accordance with the ISPM-15 standard must be suitably treated and labelled with an official label.  The EU also requires that wooden packaging material should be suitably treated and labelled prior to being imported into the EU.

The special post-processing of wooden packaging material may be performed by natural or legal entities that have been registered for such activities at the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Food Safety, Veterinary and Plant Protection. Suitable technical equipment and suitably professionally trained personnel must be ensured for the entry into the Register of Producers, Processors, Importers, and Distributors of Plants, Plant Products, and Supervised Objects (FITO Register) and for an official approval of facilities.