Formaldehyde Emission Standards of the U.S. May Greatly Influence Compound Wood Products Exporters in China

By CnAgri2017-04-06 09:29:15 Print

The formaldehyde emission standards of composite wood products issued by EPA and announced by the Federal Register will take effect on February 10, which required that the veneer core or compound core hardwood plywood, particle board, MDF, other compound wood products containing these materials that are sold, supplied, sold on a commission basis, manufactured (including imported) after December 12, 2017 should accord with the requirements of formaldehyde emission. Namely, the formaldehyde emission of hardwood plywood with veneer core or compound core must not exceed 0.05ppm; it must not exceed 0.09ppm for particle board; it must not exceed 0.11ppm for MDF; it must not exceed 0.13ppm for thin MDF.

China is export-oriented in plywood, fiberboard, floor and furniture. Because the United States is one of China's main wood products country of trade, the formaldehyde emission standards were greatly enhanced compared with the existing standards and much higher than the standards in China and the standards of the world. After the standards take effect, it will greatly influence the Chinese compound wood products exporters of boards, floor, furniture.

A. It will increase the costs of production and test costs of the wood products enterprises in China.

B. It will extend the customs clearance time in port.

C. At present, most of the wood products cannot meet the requirements of the bill (only a few products were approved by CARB, California) and the products are likely to be notified or returned.

D. Other countries may also raise the standards accordingly, thus may further restrict the wood products exports of China.