Getting Rid of Pantry Pests Safely and Effectively is PermaTreat's Specialty.

What are "pantry pests"? Basically these pests have an appetite for stored food products that might be found in either a residential or commercial kitchen pantry.

They like to eat flour, cereal, dry pasta, dry pet food, powdered milk, corn starch, crackers, spices, breads, bird seed, dried nuts and fruit. They become especially troublesome when these foodstuffs are stored in paper containers and go unused for extended periods of time.

Pantry pests like Rice Weevils, Granary Weevils, Grain Moths, Grain Bores, Drugstore Beetles, Tobacco Beetle, Indian Meal Moth, Confused Flour Beetle, Red Flour Beetles,etc. are important to the householder because they cause food waste and infestations can be persistent. The presence of beetles, cockroaches or ants in your food storage area may be the first sign of an infestation.

Insect pantry pests can be brought into homes in packaged foods that are infested, although they may enter from outside sources, or from adjacent apartments. The majority of these pests are either beetles or moths. The adult stage is the most easily detected as they often leave the infested material in search of new locations, or are attracted to lights.

Rodents can occasionally be found in kitchen pantries, as they can chew into a food box to get at the dry food like cereal inside the box. Although these may not be an issue in your pantry, "mouse in kitchen" is a commonly searched phrase on the Internet!

If you find any of these pests in your pantry, the first line of defense is to remove visbily infested food, clean the pantry of any loose food particles, and ensure that all foods are stored properly. If the infestation continues, call PermaTreat for a FREE inspection!

Information courtesy of Wikipedia and the National Pest Management Assn.