Effective June 1, 2005 all wood packaging material (WPM) excluding paper products, will be required to be treated and marked under International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures-Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging in International Trade ISPM15.

The wood packaging material regulation for Korea allows for the option of heat treatment for both coniferous and non-coniferous packaging material under ISPM 15 (heat treatment to the core temperature of 56 degrees C for a minimum of 30 minutes) with the official ISPM mark OR treated with methyl bromide (MB) and officially marked. However, Korea will currently not accept coniferous WPM from the U.S. fumigated with MB under the currently approved schedule under ISPM 15.

Wood packaging material that’s considered processed wood produced from glue, heat, and pressure or a combination thereof (plywood, veneer panel, particle board, etc…) are exempt from the treatment and marking.