Essential fly control for food environments

A fly infestation can spell disaster. Flies are one of the most likely insects to cause damage and disruption to a food service or food production business. They disturb the production process, hit revenue and pose major threats to health, safety and sanitary compliance – and there are 120,000 species worldwide, posing a health risk to staff, customers and livestock by spreading disease and contaminating goods. They also have a short lifecycle and can multiply rapidly,with some fly species able to mature from eggs to adults in just seven days. As you can imagine, that can cause a lot of turmoil.

Rentokil commissioned the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) to survey decision-makers across five countries to understand the impacts of pest infestations. The results revealed thata single fly infestation can cause staff illnesses that lead to businesses losing over nine working days every year. But staff absences are just the beginning. There are many other reasons why flies are a threat to food businesses and need to be controlled. Without proper prevention, businesses could suffer from:

Contamination of stock and product, while being a risk to health by carrying disease such as:

• Salmonella
• Shigellosis
• E.Coli
• Cryptosporididium
• Myiasis

An economic impact on businesses

A negative influence of reputation

Contravening compliance and legislation.

The risk to food safety is critical. Well-publicised incidents of foodborne illness outbreaks continue to reinforce and increase public awareness of food quality and safety, meaning any fly infestation can lead to long term loss of trust from customers and damage to brand reputation.

No food environment is exempt from responsibility. Flies can affect kitchens, restaurants, pubs and clubs, poultry farms, local food retail, food processing – anywhere food is present. With food safety at the top of the agenda these days, a zero-tolerance approach to flies and any form of pest contamination within the food environment is indispensible.

The best ways to control flies

By adopting standard hygiene practices, businesses can go some way to preventing fly infestations. Practical measures to deter flies should include:

• Ensuring supplies that are not in the early stages of decay.
• Cleaning production areas and equipment while inspecting regularly.
• Disposing garbage regularly — especially in hotter climates.
• Ensuring there is sufficient storage volume for waste produced.
• Keeping supply areas clean.
• Cleaning drains and making sure that they are kept free of accumulating organic matter
• Using appropriate insect light traps.

Exclusion is another key area that will help to keep flies at bay. These measures could and should include:

• The use of screens on windows and vents.
• Appropriate door design and kept shut when not in use.
• The prevention of gaps appearing in any part of the building fabric.

Taking a proactive approach to fly prevention will help you avoid more costly treatments if an infestation becomes more serious. Once standard hygiene and exclusion practices have been implemented, the best way to keep infestations at bay is to use an LED ILT for effective monitoring and control.

Introducing the best LED range of ILTs on the market

The Lumnia range provides commercial fly control solutions designed to effectively attract, kill and encapsulate flies in a hygienic manner. Lumnia’s innovative LED ILTs are the modern solution to an age-old problem – attracting and containing flying insects quickly and securely and keeping them out of sight.

Lumnia works by using high-attraction LED lamps. These lamps can reach up to 80% further than traditional units. Once removed from the environment, a non-pesticide glueboard and encapsulation cassette inside the unit reduces the risk of insect fragments escaping and helps to prevent cross-contamination.Simple to clean and service, the units have been designed with a sliding mechanism to allow safe access and removal of glueboards.

Why businesses should choose the Lumnia range

Having the right protection in place to prevent fly infestations is imperative - and Lumnia is the solution. Its optimised LED lamps can catch flies faster than any other LED ILT on the market and ensures your business is fully compliant and helping to mitigate the risk of food contamination.

Lumnia’s LED lamps also save up to 70% of energy use compared to fly traps that use fluorescent bulbs. Lumnia LED lamps even reduce carbon emissions by 62%, so you can now reduce your carbon footprint and save on electricity bills. As well as all that, LED lamps also last longer – around three years – so you won’t have to spend money on replacing them every year.

A family of four – thanks to the arrival of Lumnia Slim – the Lumnia range now includes two models available in multiple colours, so you can complement your businesses surroundings and branding in customer-facing locations. In fact, Lumnia offers a convenient solution for every environment, large or small.

The highly effective out-of-sight glueboard can be serviced quickly and easily, with minimal disruption to your business operations, but most importantly, the Lumnia range complies with all legal and health and safety requirements, giving you peace of mind and letting you concentrate on the day-to-day running of your fly-free business.