Its safe to say that if you are involved in either importing or exporting goods, that at some point you have probably used wooden packaging or pallets to move your or your customers goods.
From the 1st January 2021, new requirements for importing & exporting goods using wooden packaging & pallets have come into affect.
The new requirements include:
You, or your packing service or freight forwarder, must make sure any solid wood packaging you use meets the requirements.
Solid wood packaging includes:
- packing cases
- boxes and crates
- drums and similar packing
- pallets, box pallets, pallet collars and other load boards
- dunnage (loose wood used to protect goods and their packaging)
What you need to do depends on whether you’re importing or exporting. If you do not follow the rules your packaging could be rejected or destroyed and you’ll need to transport the goods another way.
Solid wood packaging must meet the ISPM15 international standards if you use it to import goods into Great Britain.
If you use wood packaging to export goods, check if the country you’re trading with accepts ISPM15 standards and if they have any other requirements.
You can either:
- check the global exporters’ guide
- contact the country’s embassy or national plant protection organisation
Source: GOV.UK