Eating out has always been a favorite American pastime and now that phase two is in place throughout North Carolina, you may be already open or are working toward opening your restaurant under the new social distancing guidelines. While it’s important to follow the new rules regarding social distancing put in place through the North Carolina Health and Human Services guidelines, don’t forget to think about pest control. 
Restaurant Pest Control
When people are finally allowed to come back and enjoy your food or retail establishment, the last thing you want is to see nasty critters to ruin the fun. Not only can just one pest found in a customer’s meal open up your business to a massive lawsuit, but pest infestations can also quickly become a huge problem. This is because pests reproduce and infiltrate very quickly. For these reasons, we recommend having an ongoing pest control program in place to protect the livelihood of your business.
Critters are tricky, and it isn’t always easy to know if they are present. However, there are ways to identify what type of pest infestation you have. Knowing this may help your exterminator understand what kind of treatment to use and how to troubleshoot the situation.
Tips for Pest Identification:
Food crumbs
Many pests can get into food when not properly sealed, and some rodents can chew through plastic, cardboard, and other types of food packaging. Crumbs left behind are a sure sign of a pest infestation.
Pest Droppings
All pests leave behind feces, but the size of the feces may help determine the type of pest. Rodents such as mice, rats, squirrels, prairie dogs, chipmunks, chinchillas, porcupines, beavers, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, and capybaras have larger droppings than cockroaches, ants, and other smaller pests. 
Client Sightings
If customers see any pests on this day of social media and smartphones, they will immediately take to Facebook or Instagram to show their despicable experiences. This could result in a string of bad publicity for your restaurant and a call from the health department.
With the warmer climate, we experience here in North Carolina, not having pests inside your establishment is next to impossible. However, there are a few steps you can take to help minimize your chances.
- Keep everything clean and sanitized. This will go a long way toward effective pest control. Clean all kitchen equipment, floors, walls, storage areas, and dining areas regularly.
- Clean up any spilled foods immediately and keep all foods covered and properly stored.
- Inspect all shipments of food and supplies for signs of bugs.
- Keep trash in easily washable containers and dispose of waste every day.
- Inspect all kitchen equipment, cracks, holes, crevices, and walls in the building and keep in mind that bugs can fit in the smallest of spaces.
- Use sealant around windows and doors and never leave doors or unscreened windows open.
If you or a customer spots an insect or pest, call the professionals at Commercial Pest Control
Our knowledgeable and highly-trained exterminators understand the food service industry and will protect the safety of your customers and employees at all times. We can be reached at (704) 763-0204 in North Carolina or (803) 802-7540 in South Carolina. You can also contact us here for more information. Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook for the latest deals and check our blog for monthly pest control tips and tricks.