Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/763062
20 PalletCentral • November-December 2016 palletcentral.com ou're a proud licensee of the Pallet Design System™ (PDS). You know that you make an important product of exceptional strength, stiffness and durability. Now the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) knows it as well, and you can put a label on your product that says so. Your pallet is 100% biobased and certified under USDA's BioPreferred® program. In the 2002 "Farm Bill", Congress created the BioPreferred program as a way to, in the words of the program, "spur economic development, create new jobs and provide new markets for farm commodities. The increased development, purchase, and use of biobased products reduce our nation's reliance on petroleum, increase the use of renewable agricultural resources, and contribute to reducing adverse environmental and health impacts." Since then a multitude of products like rugs or carpets, pesticides, shampoos and clothing have been assessed by the USDA and allowed to say that they have a percentage of their product that is biobased. Pallets made by PDS are 100% biobased. Biobased products are derived from plants and other renewable agricultural, marine and forestry materials. These products provide an alternative to conventional petroleum derived products and include a diverse range of offerings such as lubricants, detergents, inks, fertilizers and bioplastics. For the purposes of the BioPreferred program, biobased products do not include food, animal feed or biofuels. Y BUSINESS You Know It. Now You Can Show It. By Steve Gardner