Moths – Stored Food Pests
Sometimes referred to as Pantry Pests, Stored Food Pests or Indian Meal Moths, these insects can be a significant irritant to homeowners and cause millions of dollars’ of damage in the warehouses of retailers and manufacturers of foodstuffs. When I get a call from a homeowner saying they have ‘little flying moth-like things’ wafting through the air of their kitchen, it is almost certain that they have an infestation of Pantry Pests. However, these insects can be recognized not only through their mere presence, but by the holes and webbing in the packaging as well as by insect feces in the foodstuffs.
The two most common types of moths found infesting food packages in our area are the Indian Meal Moth (grey with tan or brown stripes on it’s wings), and the Angoumois Grain Moth (usually lite tan in color). The most common beetles found in foodstuffs are; the Sawtoothed Grain Beetle, the Drugstore Beetle, the Khapra Beetle, Granary Weevil and the Confused Flour Beetle.
These insects are well-adapted to living and breeding in food that is low in moisture content. They usually come into the home randomly with some infested package of food and then greatly increase in number and crawl into uninfested food. They can enter through extremely small cracks and may then crawl, and in some instances bore directly through the wrapper and container of surrounding grains and cereals.
If the homeowner is active in addressing the problem and participating in ridding their home of these pests, the following treatment has proven quite effective.
First, the source of the infestation must be identified and thrown out. The source is the one item that was brought into the home which started the infestation. In most cases, once the source is found and disposed of, the problem can be effectively treated.
Next, the entire pantry should be emptied and all infested foods should be disposed of as well. I understand that this can be quite costly and unfortunate, however, leaving the source behind and unaddressed will likely result in the insects continuing to reproduce within that item and eventually find their way into any new products that you bring in.
Keeping the health of the occupants of your home or structure as the first priority, we offer several different approved pest control techniques for the treatment of moths and foodstuff beetles. These methods may include handspraying, dusting, fogging, baiting and the use of residual crack and crevice aerosol products among other treatments. Because each occurrence is different, treatments will be employed as applicable in specific situations.
Because Pantry Pests are known as “occasional invaders” it is difficult to treat preventatively for them. However a recurring service plan for residential and commercial properties will maintain a healthy barrier around your structure should insects come crawling.
