What the stamp is
ISPM 15 regulates wood packaging material in international trade. Wood must be debarked before heat treatment, and the wood core must reach at least 56 degrees C for a minimum of 30 minutes. Bark that remains must be less than 3 cm wide, or if wider, under 50 square centimetres in surface area. The mark shows the wood met the rule.
Reading the burn
Look at a block or stringer for a small box with the IPPC wheat symbol, a country code, a producer code and the letters HT. No stamp, no export. The stamp guide walks line by line, and ISPM 15 for export from Utah covers the rules around it.
Not every load needs it
| Destination | Usually needs HT? |
|---|---|
| Domestic truck, Salt Lake to Denver | No |
| Container to Asia or Europe | Yes |
| Canada from the continental U.S. | Exempt for now, pending a phased move to full ISPM 15 |
The Canadian line is from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's page on wood packaging; check it again before you ship.
What heat treatment does not do
- It does not make the pallet new. Used stock can be marked, or not.
- It does not stop mold. Pallets loaded into a van while still hot can mold afterward.
- It does not certify a pallet by itself: only the facility that treats the wood applies the mark.
Ask for a price
Say marked stock is needed, the size, and the count.
Handling a marked stack
Treat marked pallets as a separate product from unmarked ones, even when they look alike. A mixed stack is a problem if one unmarked pallet slips into a container load. Keep marked stock apart, label the stack and check each pallet against the stamp before it is built into a load.
A pre-shipment routine
- Photograph the mark on a sample.
- Check that the mark appears on two opposite sides.
- Count marked pallets against the load plan.
- Keep the photos with the shipping file.
For the full rule see the export guide, and for the symbol itself see reading the stamp.
Lead time and the container calendar
Export freight runs on a calendar. A vessel cut-off, a container pick-up and a customs appointment each have a date, and pallets must be in hand before the first of them. Work backward from the cut-off: how many days does it take to build the load, to wrap and label it, to truck it to the terminal? Whatever remains is the window for sourcing marked stock.
- Find the vessel cut-off and the rail ramp date.
- Subtract the days needed to build and wrap.
- Subtract the trucking time to the terminal.
- The remainder is your pallet window; write it in the request.
A word on treated versus new
New wood is not automatically treated, and treated wood is not automatically new. Used pallets can be heat treated and marked, though many are not. If a customer insists on new marked pallets, say so. If used marked stock is acceptable, say that, because it widens the choices.
Storage after treatment
Heat treatment kills pests present at the time, but it does not protect against moisture afterwards. A marked pallet that is left outdoors in the snow can grow mould just as easily as an unmarked one. If marked stock will wait for a container, keep it covered and off the ground, and say so in your description when you sell or buy it.
- Cover marked stock.
- Keep it off wet ground.
- Rotate the oldest first.