Pallets for food wholesale and grocery
Food freight needs clean, dry, odor-free pallets. Metro Detroit has a dense wholesale trade, from Eastern Market to distribution centers in Canton, Livonia and Warren.
Who is here
- Eastern Market, Detroit. A 43-acre district with more than 150 businesses; the wholesale market runs at night on weekdays from April to November. Eastern Market.
- Canton Township. Sysco Detroit had 373 employees in the 2024 top-employer list. Canton Township.
- Warren. Lipari Foods had 1,300 employees in 2022. Warren.
- Livonia. Mastronardi Produce is among the top employers. Livonia.
- Monroe. SYGMA foodservice distribution. Monroe.
- Romulus. Kroger's automated fulfillment center. Romulus.
What food freight asks of a pallet
- Dry. Wood below 20% moisture will not support mold, mildew, decay or fungus. Wet pallets are the first to be refused. Mold guide.
- Clean. No oil, chemicals or stains. A pallet that has carried a drum is not a food pallet.
- Sound. Protruding nails and splinters tear packaging.
- Uniform. Mixed sizes jam racks and stack badly.
Heat-treated pallets loaded into trailer vans while still hot are susceptible to mold, because heat treatment does not make wood immune to it. Stock that has just come out of treatment should cool and dry first.
Selling from a food dock
A food dock rarely has a mold or odor problem but often has a mixed-size problem, as inbound pallets arrive on whatever the supplier used. Sort by size and keep the stack dry and covered. Sell used pallets.
Questions from food docks
Can used pallets carry food?
Yes, if they are clean, dry and odor-free. Many buyers insist on Grade A.
Is a stained pallet unacceptable?
For direct contact with packaging, usually. Stains suggest spills, and spills suggest bacteria.
What about pallets from the freezer?
Let them dry out. Moisture is the issue, not cold.
A dry yard is half the job
Wood below 20% moisture will not support mold. The simplest way to stay under that line is to keep pallets off bare ground, under cover, with air moving past them. A few cinder blocks and a tarp go a long way, and a stack so stored keeps its value for weeks.
The sniff test
Smell is a quick check. A pallet that smells of mildew, fuel or chemicals will not go back into food. Trust the nose, and photograph anything that looks wrong.