National Pest Management Month
What Can Pest Management Do for Your Business?
Did you know that April is recognized as National Pest Management month? The National Pest Management Association (NPMA) has been observing this month for over 30 years. National Pest Management Month honors the pest control industry, and pest management professionals, for playing a critical role in protecting the nation against the threats pests pose to food, health and property.
In honor of National Pest Management Month, we’ve put together some interesting pest management facts and answered three of the top questions regarding commercial pest management.
Did you know…?
What is IPM?
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is the industry best practice approach to pest management that uses all non-chemical methods of control prior to considering the use of pest management materials. The foundation of IPM is a thorough inspection. Inspection is the key to identifying the root cause of the problem, which can often be corrected with non-chemical means, for longer-term control.
A strong IPM program will include carefully considered exclusion and control methods customized to a specific industry or pest pressure. When properly implemented and facilitated, an IPM program protects your product, employees and consumers against damage and contamination from insects and wildlife.
Why is pest control important to health?
April also celebrates World Health Day on April 7, 2018. It is fitting that World Health Day falls during National Pest Management month, as pest management plays a large role in preventing a variety of pest-borne illnesses. Zika virus, West Nile virus, Lyme disease, malaria, hantavirus and even asthma have all been found to be caused and spread by insects and rodents. These diseases can be transmitted through bites, droppings/feces, shed hair and body parts, and nesting materials. Eliminating pests from your facility, and preventing them from invading in the first place, helps ensure your product, employees and consumers are safe from pest-related diseases.
How does pest management help my business?
One key word: protection. Successful pest management protects your brand, product, facility, employees and customers. The sight of a cockroach or rodent in your restaurant or store can start a social media storm. Bird or rodent presence can shut your food processing facility down. Pests may initially seem like a small and harmless issue, but left unmanaged they can, and will, multiply. Pest infestations lead to contaminated food product, damaged building structures and equipment, and destroyed wiring and cables. When you have an IPM program in place at your business, your pest management provider will work with you and your employees to ensure issues that are causing, or could lead to, a pest infestation are identified, and solutions are put in place to eliminate them.