Implementation of

Wood Packaging

Material Regulation 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal

and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has

revised its import regulation for solid wood packaging

material (WPM). The revised regulation is consistent

with the International Standards for Phytosanitary

Measures (ISPM): Guidelines for Regulating Wood

Packaging Material in International Trade (ISPM

Publication No. 15) and restricts the importation of

many types of wooden packaging materials, such as

pallets, crates, boxes, and dunnage. 

APHIS revised its import regulation in response

to increased interceptions of nonnative pests associated with WPM at U.S. ports-of-entry. If left

unchecked, pests imported with WPM could cause

significant economic damage to the agricultural and

forest resources of the United States. 

The revised WPM regulation became effective

September 16, 2005, and requires WPM used in

international trade to be treated. The approved treatments are (1) heat treatment (HT) to a minimum

wood core temperature of 56 oC for a minimum of 30

minutes or (2) fumigation with methyl bromide (MB). 

WPM also must be marked with the International

Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) logo and the twoletter International Organization for Standardization

(ISO) code for the country that treated the WPM.

Additionally, WPM must be marked with a unique

number assigned by the exporting country’s national

plant protection organization to the treatment facility

and either the abbreviation HT or MB. Paper certifications (treatment certificates) are no longer required

or accepted in lieu of the IPPC logo.

Exemptions From New Requirements

WPM made entirely of manufactured wood material

(e.g., particleboard, plywood, oriented strandboard),

wine and whiskey barrels, and WPM with a thickness

of 6 mm or less are exempt from the treatment and

marking requirements. WPM of Canadian origin is

also exempt from the treatment and marking requirements (7 CFR 319.40–3).

Three-Phase Enforcement Plan

Enforcement of the new WPM regulation is being

handled in a three-phase approach, in coordination

with not only the U.S. Department of Homeland

Security’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) but

also with APHIS’ plant protection organization counterparts in Canada and Mexico. 

Phase one of the enforcement plan began

September 16, 2005, and continued through January

31, 2006. For the duration of this phase of enhanced

compliance, CBP provided importers with official documentation when the shipments are determined "not

compliant" during routine port-of-entry inspections.

APHIS receives information from CBP on any ISPM

15-marked shipments found to contain timber pests

and follows up with the affected country's plant protection organization.

The second phase of enforcement actions began

February 1, 2006, and continues through July 4,

2006. During this phase, APHIS and CBP require all

commodity imports with WPM consisting of pallets

and crates entering or transiting the United States to

be compliant with the ISPM 15 treatment and marking standard. WPM that does not meet the ISPM 15

standard will not be allowed to enter into the United

States and will be reexported.

Shipments containing packing material that is in

violation of the rule may be allowed entry only if the

CBP Port Director determines that it is feasible to

separate the approved material from the noncompliant portion of the shipment. Arrangements to have

the noncompliant WPM exported from the United

States would be required before any reworked cargo

can be released to the consignee. All costs associated with this process are the responsibility of the

importer. 

During the second phase of the enforcement,

CBP will continue to inform noncompliant importers

that use intact, whole, or solid wood as dunnage of

their obligation to use ISPM15-compliant wood in

association with their blocked or braced cargos. 

Phase three of the enforcement plan begins July

5, 2006. At that time, all WPM entering or transiting

through the United States must meet the ISPM 15

standard and be free of timber pests. APHIS and

CBP will require the immediate reexportation of any

ISPM 15 marked WPM that is found to be infested

with a live wood boring pest of the families

Cerambycidae, Buprestidae, Siricidae, Cossidae,

Curculionidae, Platypodidae, Sesiidae, or Scolytidae.

Plant pests that attack live trees prior to being manufactured into WPM will not survive the treatments

prescribed in the regulation. If a wood-boring pest is

found in marked WPM, it confirms that the WPM has

not been treated and marked in accordance with the

Factsheet

Plant Protection and Quarantine May 2006

APHIS
regulation and will be reexported. The importer will

be responsible for any costs or charges associated

with the reexportation. This policy is an explanation

of the existing regulations and is consistent with the

intent of the rule and the Plant Protection Act.

The North American Plant Protection Organization

has trilaterally agreed to this phased-in enforcement

plan to regulate the movement of WPM into or

through the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Noncompliance with the ISPM 15 standard will

create considerable hardship for importers moving

cargo into the United States. To avoid delays and

rejection of cargo commodities entering or transiting

through the United States, USDA strongly recommends that all importers utilize only ISPM 15-

approved WPM or seek alternatives to regulated

WPM.

Additional Information

For more information on the WPM regulation, please

visit this Web site: 

<www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/wpm/import.html>. 

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United States Department of Agriculture • Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service • Safeguarding American Agriculture