Like any other animal, pests too breed and thrive around the most vital source required to carry out a living, which is, food! Pest infestation has different levels, which depends on the quantity of food present around. At homes, since there isn’t much food, it is easy to avoid pests by simply keeping the kitchen clean, clearing the garbage bins at night, clearing the food crumbs dropped on the floor, etc.
But, the real challenge is faced when the place is filled with fresh food, and grains of all kinds. Such places are grocery stores. There is regular and in-stock supply of food in grocery stores which acts like an invitation to pests.
Grocery shops are often vulnerable pest breeding areas due to an easy access for different foods items in abundance. From grains, to fresh produce, grocery stores are loaded with everything that attracts pests of all kinds.
Due to the constant incoming of pests such as rodents, flies, lizards, cockroaches, and other insects in the premises, good quantity of food goes waste because of the infestation caused by them. Further resulting in financial losses, wastage of food products, hampers the goodwill of the firm, and most important health hazards to consumers.
So, here are the 4 biggest challenges and ways to overcome them if you are a grocery store owner:
- Rodents: Mice and rats are the biggest menace in grocery stores. They often bit away into food packets and vegetables, wasting and contaminating them at large. So the best way to curb them is laying mouse traps strategically around the aisles and corners, or even at the entrance and exit gates of the store.
- Flies: Flies breed over moist surfaces, thus fruits and vegetables and dairy sections, are highly attractive areas for them. This can be dealt with installing electronic fly traps.
- Mosquitoes: Too many mosquitos flying around makes it very unhygienic and irritable for the customers too. However spraying a regular pesticide might be a bad idea, when so much of food is around. Therefore, the best way to deal is using a repellent.
If a product is purchased by a customer and if it has been under the influence of a pest, then, it will impact the health of the customer and also the goodwill of the store. Use of organic ways for pest control will save the food from getting poisoned and spoilt. However, pest control should be done once a month and from an experienced, licensed and trusted company, that knows which products to use when so much of food is around for people consumption.