The Health Dangers of Plastic Pallets

Pallets are used to transport food, clothing, medicines and many other products. According to ABC-TV's "Good Morning America," at least 1.2 million pallets are in use in the United States at any one time. Manufacturers use two materials to make pallets: wood and plastic. Each material has its advocates, but researchers have identified specific health dangers associated with plastic pallets.

Deca

• The issue of health dangers associated with plastic pallets arises from the use of a flame-retardant chemical, decabromodiphenyl ether, also known as deca. Plastic pallets are treated with deca to reduce fire hazards. According to the Environmental Working Group, a non-profit organization that uses public information to advocate on health and environmental issues, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must give its approval before deca can be used in any environment where it will come into contact with food products. In June 2009, the Environmental Working Group asserted that fruits and vegetables shipped on plastic pallets were being exposed to deca in ways that could allow the chemical to leach into the food.

Legal Issues

• As the Environmental Working Group pointed out, Maine and Washington have taken action to prohibit household products treated with deca from entering their states. The bill in Maine was titled "An Act to Protect Pregnant Women and Children From Toxic Chemicals Released Into the Home." Those bans did not include plastic pallets treated with deca. The Environmental Working Group was lobbying the FDA to prohibit the use of deca around food. Action at the federal level came on a broader scale in December 2009 when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the manufacturers of deca had agreed to phase out the use of the chemical in all applications in the United States by the end of 2013.

Concerns

• According to "Pallet Enterprise," a trade magazine for the pallet and sawmill industry, Oregon's state legislature passed a bill banning the chemical, thus prohibiting the introduction of any product containing deca into Oregon effective Jan. 1, 2011. According to a news release from the legislature, Oregon became the fourth state to pass a deca ban, following Washington, Maine and Vermont. The legislators cited studies showing that deca migrates from its host into the environment and then into humans, where it builds up in fat tissue and breaks down into toxic forms. Manufacturers of plastic pallets are seeking an exemption from the ban.

Impact

• Plastic pallets with deca will still be in use until the end of 2013 in almost all states, under the voluntary agreement between the industry and the EPA. Until then, as cited by the state legislatures of Maine, Washington and Oregon, deca-treated plastic pallets will continue to pose potential health hazards, primarily when used to transport fruits and vegetables shipped without protective packaging.