​With Earth Day right around the corner, let's take a closer look at how pallets made from post-consumer material fit into the EPA's guidelines for making environmentally-conscious purchasing decisions. And, how things aren't always as they first appear.

If you're old enough to remember the 80s, you may recall that's when recycling became the next big thing. Here we are almost 40 years later, and although recycling continues to be an important part of the environmentally preferable hierarchy, we have learned a lot about what recycling can and cannot do.

If you read my last post, 6 Benefits of Using Plastic Pallets in Colors, you already know that black is the most popular color for plastic pallets.

​In this post, we'll take a look at the top five popular plastic pallet colors, examples of how each color is used and why color costs more than black.

​You've probably noticed most plastic pallets are black. Why? That's easy. They cost less to manufacture. 

And, yes, that means blue plastic pallets cost more. So do plastic pallets made in red, green, yellow or any other color in the rainbow. (Find out why in my next post on the five most popular colors for plastic pallets.) For now, let's look at the many benefits of buying plastic pallets in a specific color and why it's sometimes worth it to spend more.

​The market for used plastic pallets is strong and for good reason. Reusability.

Plastic pallets are generally engineered for durability. Even the ones manufactured for one-way shipping can often survive multiple trips. The staying power of plastic has increased circulation numbers and introduced an interesting opportunity.

The most popular standard pallet size in US inches is 48L x 40W. How popular? The 48x40 accounts for approximately 30% of all wooden pallets produced each year.

The 48x40 standard was set by the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) more than forty years ago. For this reason, you may hear it called a GMA pallet. But, not all 48x40 pallets are designed to GMA specs nor are they all used in the grocery industry. Interestingly, that's true of most any "industry standard" pallet. Even though a pallet may have originally been standardized for a specific trade, its use is often not exclusive to that industry alone.

OK, so you run a cold storage operation and the FDA has been in a time or two talking about the FSMA and other interesting subjects. So far you are in full compliance, but you thought it might not be a bad idea to look into switching to plastic pallets for your sub-freezing storage.