Keep Pantry Pests at Bay This Holiday Season

Keep Pantry Pests at Bay this Holiday Season

Cookies and cakes and pie – ‘tis the season for baking! Pantry pests, however, can put a truly unappetizing damper on your holiday sugar consumption if they make their way into your ingredients. Here are the answers to some common “pantry pest questions” to keep in mind this holiday:

What are pantry pests?

Pantry pests thrive on a diet of the dried foods often found in pantries. These include cereals, crackers, flour, pasta, pet food, dried fruit, candy, powdered milk, nuts, spices, birdseed, and even tobacco. Pantry pests are mostly beetles – these include the warehouse beetle, the sawtoothed grain beetle, the cigarette beetle, the drugstore beetle, and the red flour beetle. You’ll also want to watch out for the Indian meal moth, a small coppery moth with a tendency to spread to other rooms in your home.

Where do they come from?

If you have pantry pests, they’ve likely entered your home via packaged products purchased at the store, then quickly reproduced while living on a steady diet of the items in your pantry.

How do I prevent them?

• Inspect packaged items at the store for tiny tears and openings.
• Store all dried food in airtight containers.
• Never mix old and new products together before making sure both are pest free.
• Clean out old containers before refilling them.

Pointe Pest Control serves Crystal Lake and other surrounding regions. For any questions about seasonal pest control, contact our experts today. Happy Holidays!