Can food companies use used pallets?

Many do, if they are dry, clean and free of odor. Ask for Grade A or a sorted B and state the standard.

How many craft breweries are in the region?

In 2025 data, 344 in Virginia, 132 in Maryland and 11 in the District.

Pallets for food and beverage around dc

Food and beverage docks want dry, clean, sound pallets and want them consistently. The Washington region has coffee roasters, bakeries, bottlers, frozen-food plants and 487 craft breweries across DC, Maryland and Virginia. They all ship on pallets, and they care what the pallets touched.

Send a count Read your pile

Who is in the region

Eight O’Clock Coffee has a plant in Landover. Warren County’s 50 largest employers include Interbake Foods, a bakery, and Nature’s Touch Frozen Food, alongside Sysco. Fauquier County’s include a Pepsi-Cola bottling center. Loudoun County has Cuisine Solutions and Gate Gourmet, a food maker and an airline caterer. Culpeper has Merchants Grocery Company and Gotham Greens, which grows produce.

The Brewers Association counts 344 craft breweries in Virginia, 132 in Maryland and 11 in the District of Columbia in 2025 data. Small producers receive grain and glass on pallets and ship out in cases and kegs.

What a food dock asks of a pallet

Ask	Why
Dry, under 20% moisture	Wood below 20% does not support mold, mildew or decay
No odor, no stains	Visible and smell signs are the first things an auditor reads
No chemical contact	A pallet that held a spill is out
Consistent size	48x40 for most; 42x42 or 48x48 at many beverage docks
No MB mark	Methyl bromide fumigation is a reason to refuse for food use

Pallet Enterprise; Interlake Mecalux.

Selling and buying

Selling empties. Clean, sorted 48x40 Grade A and B are a sale. Wet or stained ones are a clear-out.
Buying. Say what the pallets will carry, the size and any standard. We reply saying whether it is a buy-back and what grade your description reads as.
Beverage sizes. See 42x42 and 48x48.

See mold and moisture for what to check before a load goes out.

Hot, cold and dry

Frozen-food and bakery docks have different moisture profiles. Cold, damp storage tends to make wood absorb water, while ambient bakery storage keeps it dry. We ask where the pallets live, because the answer predicts whether they will pass a food buyer’s inspection.

Questions a food buyer will ask

What did the pallets carry?
Where were they stored?
How long were they outdoors?
Is the stamp HT or MB?

Audits and the paper trail

Food plants are audited, and an auditor looks at pallets. Expect questions on storage, pest control, pallet repair records and the source of any used stock. A seller who can answer them keeps the buyer’s trust; one who cannot loses the sale. Keep a note of where your pallets have been stored and send it with the count.

Seasonal peaks

Food and beverage run on seasons: summer drinks, holiday baking, harvest produce. Empties follow the same curve. A bottler’s July looks nothing like its February, so tell us the busy months.

Spills and odors

Sticky residue, syrup and spilled ingredients soak into wood and attract pests. Mention any pallets that have been splashed, so they can be sorted before they reach a clean stack.

Questions

Can food companies use used pallets?: Many do, if they are dry, clean and free of odor. Ask for Grade A or a sorted B and state the standard.
How many craft breweries are in the region?: In 2025 data, 344 in Virginia, 132 in Maryland and 11 in the District.

Sources

Last reviewed 2026-11-11.