Cafés, pubs, restaurants and hotels can provide pests with food, water, warmth and shelter. Frequent deliveries, waste storage and open doors can also create opportunities for rodents, cockroaches, flies and ants to enter.
Food businesses must take practical measures to prevent pests from entering or living on the premises and to eradicate pests that are present. Newcastle Pest Exterminators provides commercial pest management services for hospitality venues across Newcastle.
Oftentimes, pest control is at the back of a hospitality venue manager’s mind. This is understandable given the many other demands of running a business. However, pest management should remain part of the venue’s food-safety procedures. Pest activity can contaminate food, damage stock and affect customer confidence. Evidence of pests or inadequate pest controls may also be recorded as non-compliance during a food-premises inspection and could lead to corrective or enforcement action.
That’s why Newcastle Pest Exterminators have compiled a list of our top tips for hospitality pest control.
These steps can reduce pest risks, support early detection and help your business meet its food-safety obligations.
Hospitality Pest Control Tips
1. Follow a documented cleaning schedule – Clean food preparation areas, floors and equipment according to a documented schedule. Pay particular attention to grease, crumbs and food residue beneath cooking equipment, refrigerators, counters and shelving. Drains and hard-to-access areas should also be inspected and cleaned regularly.
Cleaning should be checked rather than assumed to have been completed. This is especially important after closing and before food preparation begins.
2. Manage waste properly – Remove food waste from preparation areas regularly. Internal and external bins should have suitable lids, liners and enough capacity for the venue’s waste volume.
Keep waste-storage areas clean and position them away from food deliveries and entrances where practical. Clean spills and residue from bins rather than relying only on emptying them.
3. Pest-proof the premises – Inspect doors, screens, vents, pipe penetrations, walls and floor junctions for potential pest access. Repair damaged flyscreens and install suitable seals or door sweeps where gaps are present.
Building repairs should be completed with materials suitable for the area and should not interfere with fire-safety, ventilation or drainage requirements.
4. Protect food and inspect deliveries – Store ingredients in suitable, sealed containers and keep food protected from contamination. Where practical, keep stock off the floor and leave enough space to inspect behind and beneath shelving.
Check deliveries for damaged packaging, droppings, insects, webbing or other pest evidence before accepting and storing the goods. Rotate stock so older products are used first, and remove expired or contaminated items promptly.
5. Remove moisture sources – Repair leaking taps, pipes and equipment promptly. Keep floor drains clean and address water pooling around sinks, cool rooms, dishwashing areas and external waste zones.
Empty containers that collect rainwater outdoors. Moisture can support cockroach and rodent activity, while standing water may provide mosquito breeding sites.
6. Reduce clutter and harbourage – Remove unused cardboard, broken equipment and unnecessary stored materials. Keep storerooms organised so walls, floors and shelving can be inspected and cleaned.
Cardboard cartons should not be allowed to accumulate in warm storerooms or near food-preparation areas because they can provide harbourage and may introduce insects with deliveries.
7. Monitor and record pest activity – Train staff to recognise droppings, gnaw marks, egg cases, shed skins, live insects and unusual odours. Record sightings with the date, location and pest observed, then report them promptly to the manager or pest technician.
Monitoring devices should be positioned and checked as part of the pest management plan. Staff should not move traps, bait stations or monitors without authorisation.
8. Train staff in pest-prevention procedures – Include pest awareness in staff induction and refresher training. Employees should understand food-storage, waste-handling and cleaning procedures and know who to notify when pest evidence is found.
Staff should not apply household sprays or unapproved pest-control products in food-handling areas.
9. Use an appropriate professional pest management service – A pest management technician can inspect the premises, identify pest species and recommend controls based on the venue’s layout and risks. Treatment may include proofing recommendations, monitoring, traps, baits and targeted pesticide applications where appropriate.
Any pesticide used in a food business must be suitable for the intended location, used according to its approved label and applied without contaminating food or food-contact surfaces.
10. Maintain and review the pest management plan – Keep service reports, pest-sighting records, monitoring results and corrective actions together. The plan should identify monitoring locations, inspection frequency, pests of concern and the responsibilities of staff, managers and the pest technician.
Review recurring activity rather than repeatedly treating the same location without investigating its cause. Complete recommended repairs, cleaning or proofing work and document when each action has been addressed.
The Risks of Pests in Hospitality Venues
Rodents, cockroaches, flies and other pests can contaminate food, packaging, preparation surfaces and equipment with harmful microorganisms or physical material. Rodents may also damage packaging, insulation and electrical wiring through gnawing.
Pest activity can result in discarded stock, additional cleaning, treatment costs and disruption to normal operations. Visible pests may also affect customer confidence and the venue’s reputation.
Once pests have established harbourage in wall voids, drains, equipment or stored goods, control can become more difficult. Early reporting and corrective action can limit the extent of the problem.
Newcastle Pest Exterminators provides commercial pest control for restaurants, cafés, pubs, hotels and other hospitality venues. Contact our team if you need an inspection, treatment or ongoing pest management plan for your business.
