The Best Food Grade Pallets to Go from Plant to Plate | Rose Pallet (2024)

FAQs

What pallets to avoid? ›

Pallets with an MB stamp have been treated with a highly toxic pesticide which can be necessary in certain regions of the world where there are pests that can't be eliminated by heat treatments.

Finding the Right Pallet for Your Business

Wooden pallets are the most commonly used, whereas plastic pallets have a long life and high reusability. The key things you need to consider are: Type of products: the most important aspect to consider is the goods you'll be transporting or shipping.

Pallets must be 48 by 40 inches and meet or exceed Grade A CBA standards. Deck coverage must be 63 percent on the top and 47 percent on the bottom. If there are visible cracks on the top or bottom boards, they must be no more than ⅛-inch wide and 15 inches long.

should avoid pallets which are painted (the blue, red and brown ones are usually collected and reused by the pallet company which supplies them). You should also avoid any pallets with a MB stamp. This stands for Methyl Bromide which is a harmful chemical used to prevent wood eating insects consuming the pallets.

Ultimately, you want to look for a stamp of “HT,” which means it's a heat-treated wood pallet (versus one treated with chemicals) and is the best option to use as a planter. When it comes to planting, herbs and greens make an excellent choice for an edible pallet garden, as they are mostly compact plants.

Untreated wooden pallets (pallets that have not been heat treated or fumigated) are a bit cheaper than treated wood pallets. On average, used untreated wooden pallets will cost around $4-$6 per piece, or $8-$10 new.

The most valuable pallet size to sell through buy-back programs are rather GMA 48×40 pallets. This pallet size is one of the most uniform pallet sizes for a wide range of industries worldwide. Since so many businesses already use 48×40 pallets, the demand for this pallet size is considerably higher than custom pallets.

Unlike wooden pallets wire mesh does not rot, warp, or splinter when wet. While plastic pallets offer similar benefits, wire mesh is often more affordable for those operating under a strict budget.

More than 30% of pallets produced in the U.S. each year are GMA pallets. The next most common pallet dimensions are 42” x 42” and 48” x 48” respectively.

Pallet sizes will always play a major role in determining the sellback value of your used pallet supply, and the general rule here is that standard sizes like 48×40 and 48×45 will have higher sellback values as compared to custom sized pallets that are less useful for other businesses.

What is a grade a pallet? ›

Grade A Pallets

Broadly speaking, a grade A classification means the pallet has not yet needed substantial repairs and looks tidy and new. Specifically, a grade A pallet has not sustained damage to its stringers and do not require repairs with plugs or companion boards.

To be compliant, they must be debarked and either heat-treated to certain specifications or fumigated with methyl bromide, which affects the central nervous and respiratory systems. Heat-treated pallets bear the initials HT (or sometimes KD for kiln dried) near the IPPC logo.

What Are FDA Approved Pallets? An FDA pallet is usually blue, although they can also come in black, gray, red, green, yellow and beige, and must be made using virgin plastic resin. No recycled plastic can be used due to the possibility of contaminating the food chain with unknown chemicals or solvents.

Our food-grade plastic pallets feature superior chemical, bacterial and general contamination resistance. This kind of protection is an absolute must for food and beverage industry operations. It takes very little contamination to ruin a food or beverage industry product and put end-users at risk.

If you don't see an IPPC logo then you know not to use it. While a pallet may be perfectly safe without the logo, it could also mean it was treated with chemicals. Another issue is what has spilled on the pallet. I'd be careful, personally, about oily pallets or ones that have clearly had something spilled on them.

Look for the IPPC stamp on the side of the wood to determine how it was treated. Pallets marked with an “HT” were heat-treated and did not come into contact with chemicals during the treating process. Avoid unmarked pallets or those stamped with an “MB” for methyl bromide.

While some pallets constructed from untreated wood can be safely burned, many pallets are treated with pesticides, fumigants, or chemicals that prevent rotting or insect infestations. Painted pallets, those visibly contaminated, or pallets marked with the letters MB should never be burned.

MB – Methyl Bromide

Pallets marked with this have been treated with a highly toxic pesticide due to some pests being able to withstand heat treatment.