Heat treatment boosts sterilization of wooden crates

MANILA, Philippines — A heat treatment (HT) for wood developed by the Department of Science and Technology-Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI) is helping the country’s wooden pallet makers pass sterilization standards for shipment crates.

Made up of a furnace-type dryer with a computerized data logger, the HT facility of the FPRDI can fumigate wooden packaging materials to pass the International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures.

The technology ensures the pallet blocks’ core reaches at least 56 degrees Centigrade for 30 minutes, ensuring that all insects and infectious organisms infesting the wood are killed.

“Compared to methyl bromide or MB, HT is a safer and cheaper way to fumigate wooden packaging materials. High MB levels are known to cause deaths and are harmful to the ozone layer. HT, on the other hand, is non-toxic and about 50 percent cheaper than MB treatment. MB also makes wood pallets non-recyclable,” Wency Carmelo of FPRDI said.?

A pallet is a flat transport structure used for shipping goods around the world. Insect pests and diseases coming from other countries are known to have caused environmental disasters in the US. In northeastern and midwestern America, these agents of destruction – though microscopic – have invaded forests and wiped out tree species in decades.

To help ensure that invasive insect pests and diseases are not transmitted from one country to another through global trade, the ISPM No. 15 was enforced in 2002, mandating the makers of wooden packaging materials to sterilize their pallets and crates.

“We are happy that DOST-FPRDI’s heat treatment technology is an export industry enabler and promotes for our pallet makers a safer and cheaper way to comply with global standards,” Carmelo said.