European wooden pallet and packaging manufacturers are being urged to take a pro-active approach towards EU draft plant health regulations so that their products can continue to be versatile and cost-effective.
Delegates at the 56th Congress of the European Federation of Wooden Pallet and Packaging Manufacturers (FEFPEB) in Cork were brought up to date on the phytosanitary (plant health) regulations by the Forestry Commission‘s Rodney Burgess.
He outlined the approved measures, heat treatment and fumigation, which will apply when the standard is adopted by countries, as well as other measures, such as chemical impregnation, which may be approved at a later date.
Meanwhile, concern expressed by delegates about some auctions being unfairly run, resulting in unrealistic prices being quoted, has led to FEFPEB issuing a quality chart ‘Good Trading Practices in electronic auctions for pallets’, which pallet auction organisers will have to adhere to in the future.
More than 130 delegates and partners, including new attendees from Latvia, were present at the September Congress, which included visits to Graingers Sawmills and Mid-Cork Pallets.