IPM strategies to manage cockroaches in commercial situations

A good workplace is a ‘pest-free’ and clean environment, so rats, mice, cockroaches, ants and other creepy crawlies are definitely unwanted guests. Unfortunately, pest-related issues in any business can result in very real costs to reputation, client base and the bottom line.

An integrated pest management (IPM) program, coupled with good hygiene, is one way of protecting a business from pest infestations. IPM practices include monitoring, prevention of access and commonsense environmental sensitivity when controlling pests.

The issue with commercial establishments, especially restaurants, is that they generally start early and close late. This makes it increasingly difficult to apply IPM and maintain cleanliness and hygiene.

Director Kati Pierce and the team at Berwick Pest Control gave us a great example of this.

“A local restaurant had become increasingly popular in the area and was fully booked for lunches and dinner, seven days a week,” said Jo, the office manager. “Staff would go to work in the late mornings and clean up the previous night’s dirty dishes, as they were too busy and too tired to clean up late at night before going home. The next day they would start the process all over again. German cockroaches were coming out at night and enjoying a feeding frenzy on the food scraps, leftovers and dirty dishes. The cockroach population was also growing in numbers.”

Things had to change – and quickly to say the least. So, the Berwick Pest Control team members put their heads together and came up with a plan. They introduced an integrated pest management program coupled with a hygiene report to the restaurant owner, highlighting areas that required attention.

First thing to change was the habit of leaving dirty dishes and food scraps out in the open after closing time. The kitchen had to be cleaned after each sitting – that is, lunch and dinner.

Second, the Berwick Pest Control team was sent in and went about sealing all cracks and crevices and possible entry points where the cockroaches were gaining easy access.

“Once the main food source had been removed and a new level of hygiene had been introduced, things became much more manageable,” continued Jo. “We started to gain further control by applying a surface spray of Envu’s Temprid^®75 Residual Insecticide on the kitchen floor area and Maxforce^® Gold Cockroach Gel in the areas that the cockroaches were most likely to harbour. Due to the domino effect of Maxforce Gold and the knock-down and residual of Temprid 75, our technicians at Berwick Pest Control were able to reduce the infestation significantly to a more manageable number, whereby they are now back to a monthly maintenance ‘call cycle’ with this customer,” said Jo.

Temprid 75 Residual Insecticide will provide the perfect surface spray for when cockroaches and other crawling insects come out at night. This insecticide combines two powerful and effective residual insecticides – beta-cyfluthrin and imidacloprid – to deliver greater control.

Envu’s Maxforce Gold Cockroach Gel is from the first generation of gels with a tailor-made bait matrix specifically to cater for a balanced range of cockroach dietary preferences. Maxforce Gold is recommended for clean-out jobs.

Envu has a full range of products designed to assist you with your day-to-day pest control requirements. For more information, contact your Envu Territory Business Development Manager today or see the full Envu range and product pages here.

To find out more information about Envu’s products and services, reach out to our team.

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