2023-09-07T18:39:00+03:00 Politics 2024-05-15T04:40:42+03:00

Ukrainian news

EPAL will strip of licenses Euro pallet manufacturers in Ukraine for using illegally sourced wood

EPAL will strip of licenses Euro pallet manufacturers in Ukraine for using illegally sourced wood

The European Pallet Association (EPAL) has announced its decision to severely punish any violators of the ban on the use of illegally cut wood. This means that even the first violation should now result in the license revocation.

This is stated in the letter sent to EPAL licensees in Ukraine.

“...unfortunately, we have repeatedly received third-party information that illegally cut wood is used for the production of EPAL Euro pallets in Ukraine. On the one hand, the suspicion is based on the discrepancy between the prices of EPAL pallets on offer and the prices for wood at official auctions in Ukraine. On the other hand, it is based on the gap between the purchase volume of officially and legally cut wood and the total sales volume of timber and wood products, which was pointed out to us in a specific case,” notes EPAL Managing Director Bernd Dorre.

Most likely, he refers here to a journalistic investigation into the manufacture of EPAL Euro pallets from illegally sourced wood at "Agropromtechcentr" ICPE factory owned by Pavlo Semeniuk who serves on the Kovel City Council.

“EPAL is currently still investigating this matter. In the future, EPAL will conduct independent investigations of the offer prices as well as the purchase and sales volumes. If a gap is found, it will be assessed by EPAL as a ground for suspicion of illegally sourced wood use. In such cases, EPAL will request documentation of purchase volumes. EPAL will also cooperate with the state forestry authorities of Ukraine in clarifying suspicious cases,” Dorre emphasizes.

He also points out that the requirement for using legally sourced wood applies not only to EPAL Euro pallets, but to all wood products sold by the licensee, including sold timber.

“It is not enough to confirm that the purchase volume of legally sourced wood covers the quantity of EPAL Euro pallets produced. It is necessary to do so for all sold wood products, including for sold timber,” EPAL emphasizes.

It should be noted that the European Pallet Association is responsible for the organization of the worldwide EPAL Euro pallet exchange pool and constantly monitors the reputation of those to whom it grants licenses. Ensuring a level playing field for all EPAL licensees is one of EPAL’s key tasks. “If the level playing field requirement is violated by the use of illegally sourced wood, the licensee should expect the license to be revoked,” Bernd Dorre emphasized in the letter.

It will be recalled that the journalists found out that between May 2022 and March 2023, «Agropromtechcentr» ICPE together with "Volyn Pallets" LLC, "Prytani" LLC and «Redrock» LLC exported pallets and boards in the amount of 141,140 cubic meters sawn wood equivalent. About 352,000 cubic meters of raw wood is needed to produce such a volume of sawn wood. Meanwhile, during the specified period, the volume of wood officially purchased by these enterprises was only 85,835 cubic meters. A number of woodworking enterprises in Volyn export pallets under one EPAL license UA-015HE, which officially belongs to "Agropromtechcentr" ICPE, even though such practice is prohibited by the rules of the European Pallet Association e.V. (EPAL). In addition, it has turned out that these companies export products under the same phytosanitary code 04026, held by "Agropromtechcentr" ICPE.