Stored product pest or pantry pest includes a variety of beetles and moths that can infest pantry foods like whole grains, processed foods in addition to the commercial products.
These pests caused a large amount of economic damage in the food worldwide that includes farm, storage, transport, processing, distribution, homes, and businesses.
Due to the potential of product contamination and failed sanitation audits, store product pests cost businesses a lot of money and most importantly loss of reputation!
Not to mention, consumers may choose to take legal action against the producers who sell contaminated products.
The pantry moths include a variety of insects such as Indian meal moth, saw-toothed grain beetle, and cigarette beetle mostly found in our homes. Store product pests like Angoumois grain moth or rice moth feed inside whole kernels. Pantry moth larvae is a ½ inch, a pale, yellow-brown creature that develops in whole kernels can be seen fluttering in the house. Moths in pantry may be seen in barley, rye, corn, oats, rice, and several other grains with a life cycle of about 6 weeks.
Indian meal moth larvae, a dirty looking, white to a pink caterpillar that feeds on grains that include dried fruits and vegetables, seeds, nuts, candy, dry pet food, animal food, and dried flowers. Indian meal moth lay eggs on food materials and once hatched the larvae burrow into the food and have a short life cycle of just 25 days. Adult Indian meal moth doesn’t cause any damage but the larvae produce feces and webbing, while feeding on the product and makes it gross for human consumption.
Red flour beetles feed on a wide variety of processed grains like flour, meal, dried fruits, dry dog food, dried meats, candy bars, drugs, tobacco, etc. They have a life cycle of about 7 weeks but adult females can live for more than a year. Since an adult female can lay almost 300 to 500 eggs even a small infestation can get out of control faster. These flour beetles consume and contaminate the food they infest in. The worst thing is that they leave foul odor and taste to the products they infest in which sounds pretty sickening and definitely calls for the information as to how to get rid of flour beetles.
Cigarette beetle attack almost every household’s food, spices, and leather goods around the globe. They are also known as tobacco beetles or cigar beetles for they feed on tobacco. Laying their eggs in and around the food materials, they destroy a variety of dried food products.
Now, let’s see what are Carpet beetles and what does a carpet beetle look like? They are oval-shaped pests about 1/8” long. Do carpet beetles bite? Yes, they do bite. Carpet beetle bite cause bumpy, itchy rashes due to the prolonged contact with the hair fibers of the black beetle bugs larvae. They also cause respiratory tract and eye irritation. Black beetles in the house have an amazing ability to get into a variety of places due to their ability to fly. Once they get to the places, they lay eggs and their larvae get into the food products. These pests are not easy to get to since they breed in the unreachable places thus causing heavy damage to your belongings and health!
Case making moth are the pests that destroy fabrics! They feed primarily on animal fibers like wool, silk, fur, and leather as these materials contain keratin, a protein that their larvae can digest. These pests are rarely visible as they avoid being in the light and stay in dark areas like closets etc. The adult moth doesn’t feed on fabrics but they lay approximately 40-50 pinhead-sized eggs that transform into fabric- eating larvae!
The first indication of the problem is seeing beetles crawling, moths flying, caterpillars across the ceilings. Besides seeing live or dead insects, other visual signs of an infestation may be webbing, cast skins larvae, pupae around the food products. The greater the number of insects seen, the older the infestation is. A thorough inspection is what is required along with the destruction of infested articles.
IKARI Treatment
The commercial pest management professionals at IKARI work with your commercial or residential facility to establish an environment that prevents store product pests from thriving. Areas like shelves, pantries, cracks, and crevices are thoroughly inspected, cleaned, vacuumed and of course, treated with pesticides to get rid of the moth infestation completely. Pheromone-monitoring systems may be placed in the facility to detect if store product pests came in from outdoors.
Our technicians follow modern, strategically- timed, low- impact, insect- growth regulator treatments or fog applications designed to interrupt the life cycle of store product pests. At IKARI, ongoing vigilance and gatekeeping which includes pheromone moth traps, detailed flashlight inspections, conditions conducive to infestation, food safety risk assessments as needed, using pest-sighting logbook will ensure the reduction of any potential infestation.
Every pest control product that IKARI technicians use, has been the subject of careful testing to ensure its safety to humans, pets, and plants. Our technicians will inform you of any specific safety precautions that may be required beforehand to ensure your safety!
- Hiding Spots
- Food Sources
- Prevention Tips
- Using sealed storage containers
- Housekeeping and proper sanitation
- Make sure no food bags are left unopened
Pantries, cupboard, cans, shelves, cracks and crevices
Flour, Barley, rye, corn, oats, rice and various grains
Ikari is now part of Progressive Wage Mark in Singapore!