Can wooden pallets used in the food industry be treated with fungicide
We have had issues with wooden pallets arriving from the supplier that have evidence of mold and/or mildew, which of course they were rejected, but supplier has suggested we treat with a fungicide prior to delivery. However, I am not sure if this is allowed in the food industry, especially in a BRC-certified facility. Can some of you that are also in the industry let me know what you do to prevent this same issue? Note: our product does not come in direct contact with the pallets.
As for wooden pallets in food processing environment, it depends on your process but it has to be stricly restricted (pest risk, cleanliness, foreign body...).
Rgds
Remi
I am going to say that if there is mold/mildew on your incoming pallets, there may be a larger issue. Your supplier may not be storing them in a sound environment. How are they getting wet/damp? If kept dry and reasonably warm, I don't think this would be an issue.
Just a random thought.
I don't know if it's allowed or not, but i would recommend against it, based on issues that can occur with the chemical fungicide migrating through the other packaging into the product. A few years ago (2009), there was a large recall of Tylenol and related products. One of the recall reasons was the pallets for some of the incoming packaging materials were treated with a pesticide. When the pesticide broke down, the chemicals migrated through the various packaging materials and then into the medication, causing a "musty odor" & customer complaints.
It would be better to have the supplier determine the root cause to prevent the problem in the first place instead of chemically treating the pallets.
I agree that the potential risk of chemical migration does exist.
Wooden pallets are not allowed in the processing environment. However finished product with both primary and secondary packaging can be stored on a wooden pallet (despatch). It is best to have a slip sheet between the pallet and the product.