According to the Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has adopted the international standard for wood packaging material, requiring hardwood materials used for international shipments to be heat treated or fumigated with methyl bromide.
All hardwood materials shipped to any of the 40 countries that have adopted the standard, which is part of an effort to prevent the spread of insect pests, must be marked with the International Plant Protection Convention logo, the two-letter International Organization for Standardization code for the country that treated the material, the treatment facility number and the method used to treat the material.
The period of informed compliance lasts until January 31, the requirement will be in place for all pallets and crates beginning February 1, and the requirements will be enforced for all wood packaging materials beginning July 5.