Conditioning of baled materials

The present invention concerns a method and apparatus for conditioning baled materials. The method comprises the steps of forcing dry steam under low pressure into the bale (B) to be conditioned for a short period of time over a substantial part of the surface area of at least two sides of the bale so that said steam penetrates the material in the bale in a relatively uniform manner, and forcing moisture laden heated air under substantially higher pressures into the bale for a longer period of time over a substantial part of the surface area of at least two sides of the bale to reduce the temperature of the steam in the bale and to substantially uniformly distribute the heat built up in the bale throughout the bale. The apparatus comprises at least two plenum pads (1) each dimension to cover a substantial part of the surface area of a side of a bale to be treated, means (2) for clamping said pads in sealing contact with at least two opposite sides of the surface of said bale, means (5, 6) for forcing steam and moisture laden heated air under pressure into said bale via said plenum pads whereby said steam/air penetrates the material in said bale in a relatively uniform manner, and means for controlling the introduction of said steam/air.