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Bad Things Come in Wooden Packages
Infestation, new EU regs dampen packaging industry
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Business New Haven
11/12/2001
By: Linda Mele
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The pinewood nematode is facing a fight one hopes it will lose.
In one corner is Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, the pinewood nematode, a microscopic eelworm, and in the other is the European Union (EU), a consortium of 15 nations (with another 12 waiting in the wings to join) that is willing to do battle against this ornery pest that has infested softwood in the U.S., China, Japan and Canada as well as Portugal, where it was discovered in 1999.
Nobody knows how it was introduced into Portugal, but “elements indicate that packaging material is the most likely pathway,” according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Since that is unknown, the critter is on the EU's hit list. As of October 1, 2001 EU member states are requiring that coniferous-based solid wood packaging material (pallets, crates, boxes and containers) made of softwood lumber must be heat-treated, kiln-dried, pressure-treated or fumigated with appropriate chemicals.
These emergency measures are in effect now. “By 2003, the United Nations plans to have in place a global standard that would require treatment for non-manufactured wood packaging made from both coniferous and non-coniferous lumber,” according to Pallet Enterprise, a trade journal.
In short, that means all wood packaging materials would have to be treated. And while each country will have its own enforcement strategy, it appears as though heat treatment will be the standard because of environmental problems associated with chemical treatments.
David Dixon, director of inspection services for Package Research Laboratory in Rockaway, N.J., says any company that plans to do business with an EU country will have to meet the standard or face the loss or return of its shipments.
So what does that mean for New Haven-area businesses? If they don't have a protocol in place to ensure the standards are met, they won't be able to do business in any EU country.
And unlike the Y2K scare that fizzled out when banks, phone systems, home computers and stock exchange didn't have a meltdown as feared, this regulation will impact the bottom line of any company that manufactures the packaging - as well as those that use it.
Michael Gherlone, operations manager for Custom Recycling Inc. in North Haven, a pallet recycling firm, says at least 15 customers have already contacted him about the emergency regulations.
“We tried to give [customers] strictly hardwood pallets, but it's too difficult to sort the hardwood ones from the softwood ones,” says Gherlone. “Some pallets have also been repaired before we got them and we don't know what they were repaired with.
“It's fairly easy to determine what they're made of when they're brand new, but after they've been used a while it's nearly impossible without inspecting every board used in every pallet,” he adds.
Gherlone says that's too labor-intensive and costly for the company which has been in business since 1993 and today employs 45 people. The company sells up to 15,000 pallets weekly.
In addition, each pallet or item of packaging material must have the official stamp of approval and the documentation from one of the accrediting agencies to prove it has complied or it also won't be accepted.
So, what does a small business like this do to comply with the temporary measures while looking ahead to the permanent measures that may be in place as soon as 2003?
Gherlone says Custom Recycling is the only company in the Northeast that currently has the most current technology to effectively treat the pallets and it should be up and running shortly.
The company's heat-treating chamber is 41 feet long and nine feet wide and can treat up to 300 pallets at a time, Gherlone says, adding that the heat-treating adds another step to the process which, in turn, will eventually raise the cost that will likely be passed on to customers.
For further information about how this may affect your business, contact the National Hardwood Lumber Association at 901-377-1818.
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