What Are Pantry Pests?
If you haven’t encountered them before, pantry pests are critters such as beetles, moths, ants, and earwigs. Though they may not pose an extreme threat, they can still be a major nuisance due to their quick ability to infest an area.
How Do They Get In The Home?
Pantry pests are often brought in through the grocery store. Most likely these pests infested the food during the manufacturing process and were sealed in the packaging. While these packages sit on the shelf, they have time to develop and chew their ways out.
What About Food Contamination?
As mentioned above, most pantry pests do not pose any real threat. Some, however, can contaminate the food from the outside germs they carried in or from their excrement. Pantry pest damage can cause the food to smell and taste bad, and sometimes make people sick.
How Do I Prevent These Pests?
Following these simple food storage and cleaning tips will go a long way in helping prevent a pantry pest infestation in your home:
- Keep food in airtight storage.
- Avoid adding new food to old food, if old food is already contaminated it can quickly ruin the fresh food.
- Regularly clean your pantry shelves and cracks in the cupboard. Pantry pest can get into small cracks and breed, as well as food and crumbs can get down and provide food for these insects.
- Clean up any spills right away.
- Inspect your groceries. Be sure to check packaging of items -before purchasing- for signs of damage.
While these steps are great for preventing pantry pests, you may discover you already have an infestation on your hands. If this is the case, you may want to hire a professional pest control company such as 3 Seasons Lawn & Pest Control. We will be able to inspect and treat the problem in a timely and successful manor. Give 3 Seasons a call today for your FREE quote!