Hi all!
If you've ever had food moths in your kitchen, you probably know how difficult it is to get rid of this pest. These insects lay their eggs in food, from which, after a couple of weeks, voracious larvae emerge, spoiling your food.
These parasitic insects can be found in both dirty and exceptionally clean kitchens. However, measures to exterminate them should be taken immediately as soon as you notice a gray-brown moth lazily flying past you. In this article I will tell you in more detail what food moth is, where it comes from, whether it is dangerous and what will help in its destruction.
What is food moth?
Externally, the kitchen moth looks like a small butterfly. Its size reaches a centimeter. The color of the wings is gray or brown. This makes it inconspicuous and allows you to hide among the products.
The insect lives for about a month and is extremely prolific. During its life cycle, it can lay many larvae in a variety of places.
The larvae of food moths look like motionless worms of white, milky or pinkish color, or light beige shades. The length can reach from 2 to 10 mm. The outer surface of the larvae is smooth and dense. Nests can be found in cereals and other groceries.
After the incubation period, small caterpillars emerge from the larvae. They begin to actively grow and develop, so they eat the food around them and spread further and further from the nest.
The caterpillar damages food by eating it and leaving excrement. Gradually, the individual’s skin hardens and a dense cocoon is formed – a pupa. By this period, the caterpillar should crawl closer to the light. She loses her skin and turns into a butterfly.
The emerging young moth immediately begins to fly from place to place, looking for places to lay larvae. The kitchen is the most attractive place for breeding. The room is always warm, there is high humidity and there is a lot of food. During the 4-6 weeks of its life cycle, the butterfly is capable of laying more than a hundred larvae.
Description of the insect
The food moth or moth is an insect that belongs to the order Lepidoptera. It is considered the closest relative of the clothes moth or house moth. It differs from the latter in color (food moth is gray) and smaller in size (only 50 mm in length).
Adult females of the pest live 10–12 days and die after laying 300–400 eggs; males live longer. The entire life cycle from egg to egg of a moth takes 45–50 days.
The larvae hatch as early as 5–10 days, depending on environmental conditions. The moth caterpillar reaches 20 mm in length and is colored light brown or milky. Humidity of 50% and temperatures above 22–25 degrees Celsius are favorable for pupation of the larvae.
The pest flies in a zigzag pattern, in a spiral, with constant fluttering. In this case, the flight path is always built near the infected area. The most dangerous are not the adults (imagos) - they do not eat anything, but the larvae, which destroy food supplies in the home.
Insects feed exclusively on dry food products:
- cereals;
- sugar;
- cocoa powder;
- dried fruits and dried fruits;
- nuts and legumes;
- cookies and sweets;
- flour;
- tea;
- pasta;
- herbal mild spices.
Ready-made pet food, seeds intended for feeding birds and rodents, and fishing bait are also susceptible to contamination.
The following types of food moths are distinguished:
- flour;
- cocoa;
- potato;
- dried fruit;
- south barn;
- cabbage;
- grain.
How harmful is food moth?
Flying moths are not dangerous. The harm from it is expressed as follows:
- May get into food. Such food is not suitable for consumption.
- Larvae contaminate food.
- Threat of spreading infection. Contaminated food can cause allergies, intestinal disorders or intoxication.
- The appearance of moths raises thoughts about the presence of parasites in food. Such thoughts are fraught with psychological discomfort.
How to detect
If unpleasant flying neighbors appear in the kitchen, then you need to start auditing your food supplies. In order to get rid of insects, you need to look through the cereals and try to find the nest.
In the photo of the food moth you can see where and in what way it makes its nests. The future army of adults is concentrated in them. When visually inspecting small cereals or flour, you should pay attention to lumps and pellets.
In cereals and other groceries, fragments intertwined with thin cobwebs may be found. The larvae are located in such lumps.
Small caterpillars can be found on the walls of containers where food is stored.
Food moths prefer to nest in the kitchen:
- In containers and bags with cereals and pasta;
- In bread bins;
- In jars for storing mild spices;
- Packaged with sugar or flour.
First steps to get rid of gray moth
When you first discover adult moths or their larvae in one of the kitchen cabinets, you don’t need to wait for a whole colony of insects to grow. Take the following actions immediately:
- All products suspected of being contaminated must be discarded. They are wrapped in a tight plastic bag and immediately taken out of the house. It is necessary to review all non-hermetically sealed containers and packaging made of cellophane, plastic, and paper.
- Cabinets in the kitchen are emptied of contents; excrement and skins remaining on the walls and bottom are removed using a vacuum cleaner. The contents of the dust bag are also disposed of or burned in a safe place along with the bag.
- Wash the shelves with a concentrated solution of laundry soap, paying attention to cracks and joints, and allow to dry. Moths do not like bright light, so it is recommended to leave cabinets open during daylight hours.
- Additionally, the inside of kitchen furniture is wiped with a weak solution of apple or table vinegar.
Moths hide not only in cabinets, but also in the immediate vicinity of them: on the ceiling, in the cracks of ceiling moldings, behind curtain rods, hoods, and upper furniture cabinets. It is advisable to also treat these surfaces with soap, vinegar or household chemicals.
All jars, containers, and packaging where contaminated products were found are washed with vinegar, mustard, and laundry soap. Then all containers are heated at maximum power in a microwave oven or frozen for 3 days in the freezer compartment or refrigerator compartment.
Methods of disposal
Destruction of a butterfly, larvae or caterpillars individually is a short-term measure. Only comprehensive measures will help get rid of the pest. It is necessary to destroy flying butterflies and nesting sites at the same time. This is the only way to stop the pest invasion.
There are effective ways to quickly get rid of food moths in the kitchen.
- If nests are found in grocery storage areas, you should immediately throw away the supplies as quickly as possible. They are no longer suitable for human consumption. There is no need to skimp on products. A larva may remain in any of them, which will become a source of new individuals.
- If, after a visual inspection, no signs of moth infestation are found in food packages, then preventive measures must be taken. Cereals are calcined in the oven at a temperature of about 60 degrees. Flour, sugar, pasta are taken out into the cold for a day.
- Absolutely all food must be removed from the cabinets. Internal surfaces should be treated with any food moth repellent. The cabinets are left open for several days, then washed with soapy water and ventilated again. Only after this procedure can you fill the shelves with supplies.
- In order to get rid of flying moths, you can use fly sticks. Butterflies stick to it and lose the ability to move.
- Special preparations are available for sale. These are sections filled with chemical compounds containing insect poison. Anti-moth tablets that are placed on shelves are effective. Larvae and caterpillars die from the smell.
- During long-term storage, products should be periodically taken out into the cold. It is necessary to ventilate cabinets more often.
Aerosols are not recommended as they will spoil the food.
Folk remedies against moths
People's advice offers options on how to get rid of food moths. It does not tolerate strong spicy odors, so it is recommended to use:
- Dry lavender. Bunches of dried flowers are laid out in cabinets. The butterfly flies away from the places where the dry bouquet will be placed;
- The aroma of tansy and wormwood repels moths. This smell is not tolerated not only by moths, but also by small house ants;
- Fresh dill is effective in the fight against moths. Bunches of greenery hung in the closet drive away moths. They need to be changed every three to four days;
- Blooming geraniums on the kitchen windowsill will protect the room from pest invasion.
Prevention
- Moths enter the apartment from outside. Therefore, you need to carefully consider product packaging when purchasing. The presence of lumps and unknown inclusions in a grocery product is a reason to refuse the product.
- Food supplies must be checked periodically and cupboards must be ventilated.
- The interior surfaces of shelves and cabinets should be wiped with water and vinegar.
- There is no need to make large reserves. They should be replenished as needed.
- For storage, you must use a special sealed container.
All of the above methods tell you how to get rid of food moths. But still, the best option is to carry out timely prevention.
And at the first sign of the appearance of a pest, immediately launch a comprehensive counterattack.
Reasons for appearance
I have already mentioned that moths do not fly very well, which excludes the possibility of this moth entering your home from another apartment, warehouse, etc. What is the reason for the appearance of this butterfly in this case?
Let's start with the fact that the eggs and larvae of this insect live in industrial grocery stores. There, checking products for such defects is a rare occurrence, especially if the product is inexpensive. As a rule, the larvae simply travel along with the products from one warehouse to another, where the products are then packaged and sent to stores.
In this simple way, infected groceries get into your warm and cozy home, where the moth begins to unfold its vigorous life activity.
