Week 18 Pest Control - We've Got SALSA Sussed

Week 18 Pest Control

Hi Everyone!

Ok, so we have had a couple of simple weeks of stock and waste control. We have a bigger topic this week, so a bit more reading on this one….. but a really important topic!

Pest Control

Being creative foodies, Pest Control might not really be your forte, so guidance is needed by an expert!

You need to have a Pest Contractor in place who performs frequent site inspections. Make sure you find a reputable Pest Contractor, preferably one who has worked in food manufacturing sites before. If they have, they are more likely to understand what the requirements are in food factories. You can always give them the Section 1.9 of the SALSA standard, so they understand what is required for you to pass an audit!

You need to have a Folder set up by the Pest company. It needs to contain specific documents in it as standard practice, which we will go through in detail.

Let’s get started!

What’s coming next…

Week 19 Equipment Control

 

Pest Control – what do you need to show your SALSA auditor?

Pest Control Procedure

Pest Awareness Training

Pest Contractor Folder

When walking through of the site – the auditor will review pest bait point locations

 

It is essential to have a trained Pest Controller appointed to carry out your Pest Control & Management.

 

It is possible to have a staff member carry out Pest Control. However, they need to have the same qualifications and training as a Pest Contractor. This in itself, is a very costly process and ultimately not financially worth it, when the services are already readily available from contractors themselves.

 

There are many Pest Contractors to choose from, some who are national companies and some who are local. The cost for national services are usually more than the local. However smaller, local services may not be used to looking after food facilities, so a little bit of research and some quotes will be required.

 

It’s good to know a little bit about the type of pests you might expect to be controlled and what risks they bring with them:

Rodents – Rats & Mice

Rats carry a disease called Weil’s disease which is very nasty. Weil's Disease is a severe form of leptospirosis. This is a type of bacterial infection. It's caused by Leptospira bacteria. You can contract it if you come into contact with the urine, blood, or tissue of animals or rodents that are infected with the bacteria.

 

Mice do not carry Weil’s disease, however can spread diseases in their urine and both rats and mice can cause all sorts of damage to packaging, wiring, ingredients etc.

 

Cockroaches

Cockroaches are not easy to get rid of once you have them, as once you have a sighting of one, usually they have already laid eggs, which means there are more on their way. Cockroaches are known carriers of diseases such as Salmonella, Dysentery & Gastro-enteritis. Cockroaches are very tough insects and their ability to breed rapidly makes treatment essential to control any infestation. Only expert products and solutions managed by professionals are powerful enough to eliminate all stages of their lifecycle. These chemicals are quite toxic so not advisable to use yourself.

 

Moths

Moths can contaminate stored product ingredients and can infest processing equipment and machinery. Your Pest Contractor will advise if your site requires moth control depending on your ingredients and equipment. Usually it comes in the form of pheromone traps located in your ingredient storage areas and processing areas. Bakeries are at a higher risk of getting moth problems.

 

Flies

Flies also carry nasty diseases, such as pathogens like Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, E. coli, and others. The main reason flies enter out buildings are that we leave doors and window open. Door control is essential to prevent flies. Fly killers are helpful too.

 

 

Pest Control Procedure

We need to think about the following:

·         Pest Awareness

·         Pest Proofing

·         Door / Window Control

·         Pest Contractor

o   Contract, Membership

o   Site bait / monitoring point plan

o   Inspections & Reports

o   Recommendations & Actions

o   Trend Analysis

o   Pest Chemical COSHH

Pest Awareness

You need to make sure you have a Training or Work Instruction for staff members to train against to make sure they understand how to look out for pests.

 

Teaching your staff members to see the Signs of Pests is essential. Have a training document which runs through the following:

·         Sightings of pests themselves – Rodents (rats and mice), Insects such as cockroaches, flies, wasps, bees and moths.

·         Signs of pests from droppings or eggs, damp patches on the floor which could be urine

·         Signs of pests from damage they have made, such as gnaw marks in packaging, cardboard or wiring

Make sure staff know that is they see any signs of pests it is essential that they Report it to Management. If it is reported it can be dealt with and pest contractors called in to deal with it.

 

It is also important that any ingredients, packaging, or finished product are put to waste if there is any doubt they have been contaminated by pests.

 

Door Control - making sure doors are kept closed unless they are actually in use for deliveries. All windows should also be screened to make sure they do not let pests enter the facility. Door control is one of the biggest problems on site and also one of the main reasons that sites get pest problems! The importance of door control needs stressing a lot!

 

Cleaning! Obviously, if your storage and production areas are clean and free from spillages, the pests will not have anything to feed off, and there will be no food to attract them to your facility in the first place.

 

Pest Proofing

Pest Proofing, is basically making sure there are no gaps or holes in the doors, windows, pipework or walls, where little critters could enter the building and if they can they will. Rats and mice have tiny bone structures which fold themselves up, and can get through the smallest of gaps. You might not think they can get through a gap, and they will prove you wrong!

 

You need to walk through your site, in every room, every door, every corner and check that you have filled all gaps, so you are preventing access for them.

 

You need to install mesh window screening. Having plastic curtains at doors will also prevent access, for when doors are open for deliveries.

 

Any recommendations which the Pest Contractor makes for pest proofing must be acted upon and signed off as complete too. This is your responsibility, so you need to read the inspection reports!

 

Pest Contactor

You and your Pest Contractor must draw up a contract agreement which states the following:

·         No of visits per year

·         The pests they are contracted to control – rodents, insects, moths etc

·         Type of visit

o   standard inspection (this is usually monthly, but depends on the level of risk your site / ingredients / finished product is)

o   biologist visit (usually once annually to review what controls you have and if you can increase or decrease the number of visits or baits)

o   Fly Killer Unit inspection, catch tray analysis and tube change

 

The Pest Contractor should also provide you with a folder to hold all of the information, inspections etc.

The Pest Contract needs to be in the front of the Pest Folder.

 

All Pest Contracting services should be members of one of the following associations:

·         BPCA – British Pest Control Association

·         NPTA – National Pest Technicians Association

You should ensure that you have a copy of their up to date certificate in the pest folder. The certificate membership is for 1 year, therefore they need to send you a new one each year for the folder.

 

 

Site bait / monitoring point plan

The pest contractor should provide you with a site plan with all of the bait points detailed on it. It should be clear what type of bait point it is – such as insect, rodent, fly killer, moth pot etc. They should also be numbered on the site plan as they are on the bait boxes.

 

This site plan needs reviewing and signing off every year to show it is up to date. This should be done by the Pest Contractor.

 

Inspections & Reports

Every time the Pest Contractor completes an inspection, they should leave you with a report – which they should discuss with you, and ask you to sign before leaving site. This is so that they can discuss their findings and any recommendations with you.

 

On a set frequency, it is best practice to accompany the contractor on the inspection, so that you can see what they are checking, and any pest findings.

 

Recommendations & Actions

If a Pest Contractor recommends anything on their inspection report, it must be acted upon by you.

 

Recommendations must be signed off by you on the inspection report. You must include the action you carried out and the date it was completed with a signature.

 

Trend Analysis

On an annual basis, your Pest Contractor needs to provide you with a trend analysis to help you to review the year. It is usually provided in some form of graph or chart. It will show by pest category, any months where you have had issues. It will help you and the Contractor (Biologist visit) to decide if you need further baits or monitoring points for the year ahead.

 

Pest Chemical COSHH

All baits or chemicals used on your site, need the COSHH Sheets (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) on file.

 

This is for the same reason you need to have COSHH Sheets for your cleaning chemicals, for cases where someone may have accidently consumed, or got them in their eyes for example. If you need to take a person to hospital, you have the relevant COSHH sheet to take with you.

 

Toxic Baits should not be used in production or storage areas for general control. Toxic baits are no longer permitted outside, this is to protect wildlife which are not classed as pests.

 

The only time toxic baits are permitted is when there is serious pest infestation problem. You Pest Contractor will control the type of baits used in cases of infestation. It must be ensured that they are all removed once the problem has been eliminated.

 

That’s it for now folks!

 

Have a good week!

 

If you need assistance, please feel free to contact me! On that note, that is the end of this section. Please do not hesitate to ask any questions.

 

Be careful and stay safe!

Ruth

Ruthshawconsultingltd@gmail.com

07732 966 836