Field Notes

Mosquito 101

As the weather heats up, so do mosquitoes. Summer is peak season for these threatening pests, whose bites can do more than just itch. Mosquitoes also can transmit diseases like the Zika virus, Chikungunya virus and West Nile virus. The good news? Everyone can do something to help prevent these pe …

Fly Activity to Look for – and Prevent – in Food Handling Environments

If you work in a food handling environment like a restaurant, grocery store or manufacturing facility, flies can deal a blow to your bottom line. These pests seek the food, water and shelter that your business provides – and their presence can lead to serious consequences. Once inside, they can cont …

Proper Food Temperatures Help Keep Food Safety Under Control

In 2014, the CDC reported 864 foodborne illness outbreaks, which resulted in 13,246 illnesses, 712 hospitalizations, 21 deaths and 21 food recalls. As a restaurant operator, you don’t want any of your diners to be part of the CDC’s foodborne illness count – your dedication to food safety is cruc …

Sanitation and Storage Best Practices: Test Your Knowledge

Proper sanitation and storage practices are crucial to food safety and effective pest management. These are preventive controls that are essential to your food safety plan – learn more about what should be included by downloading our free Food Safety Modernization Act Special Report. Failing in eith …

When It Comes to Proper Food Storage, Shortcuts Aren’t Worth It

According to the Food and Drug Administration, 43 percent of restaurants in the U.S. do not separate raw animal products from other foods appropriately. This is alarming because incorrect food storage is a main factor in foodborne illness outbreaks, which costs the U.S. between $5 billion and $1 …

Best Food Safety Practices to Avoid Food Labeling Confusion

Mislabeling or not labeling food in restaurants may seem like a minor oversight, but it can lead to major food safety failures. During a study on risk factors contributing to foodborne illnesses, the Food and Drug Administration found date marking out-of-compliance as high as 81 percent within res …

How Well Do You Know Stored Product Pests?

As essential as your ingredients are to your business, they’re also important to the stored product pests for which they’re a primary food source. These pests are capable of causing major damage to stored goods resulting in lost product and profits. These pests are fast breeders, so it’s important …

Help Reduce the Risk of Foodborne Illness at Your Restaurant

According to the CDC, more than half of foodborne illness outbreaks originate in restaurants. It’s a statistic that should concern you and other restaurant owners as you aim to provide an exemplary dining experience for your guests and avoid the PR disaster of foodborne illness. In order to do j …

Handwashing Key to Preventing your Restaurant Patrons From Getting Sick

One in six Americans get sick every year from foodborne illnesses. As a restaurant operator, preventing sickness is essential – it just may not be easy to do. After all, there are many factors seemingly out of your control when it comes to your business operations. However, there are some things y …

Don’t Let Your Bottom Line Get Burnt by Pest-Transmitted Diseases and Foodborne Illnesses

Rodents, cockroaches and flies – just the sound of their names is enough to make food manufacturers, restaurateurs and diners alike cringe. But the reality is that food establishments deal with these pests on a regular basis. In fact, a survey revealed that half of patrons saw a pest at a restaurant …

5 Common Food Safety Mistakes

As the largest commercial pest control provider in North America, Orkin services tens of thousands of restaurants, and while our primary job is restaurant pest control, we know that everything we do is really about food safety. If you’re in the restaurant business, you know how much time it takes …

Birds in Restaurants

Question: Why are birds such a problem around restaurants and other businesses? Answer: Pigeons, swallows, starlings, and other pest birds are attracted to commercial properties like kids to a candy store. They also cause tens of millions of dollars in damage every year. Their droppings can de …

Beetles in Restaurant's Kitchen Question: I have small, tube-like beetles in some of the dry goods I keep in my restaurant’s kitchen. What are they? Answer: Although you should reach out to a pest management professional to identify the exact type of infestation, it sounds like you have flour b …

Prepping For A Restaurant Inspection

Health inspectors and pests have one thing in common – they can both arrive at a restaurant unannounced. Since the main purpose of a health inspection is food safety, implementing the following procedures to your regular maintenance and sanitation routine at four common pest “hot spots” can help ens …

Pest Sightings: How They Affect Your Restaurant’s Reputation and Bottom Line

The fast-paced world of foodservice often requires juggling hundreds of details at once – one of those details being pest management. If overlooked, a dated pest management program can cause a domino effect on all aspects of your business. Your hard work can go out the window with a single pest sigh …