Press
Multi-Faceted Approach by Pest Management Professionals Necessary To Stem Recent Bed Bug Infestations Throughout U.S.
Insects present unique control challenge best addressed by education, prevention and effective products
Schaumburg, IL, August 26, 2010 – Last week was a busy period for national news outlets regarding bed bug infestations. “Ohio Turns to Feds for Help in Battle Against Bedbugs,” screamed a Time Magazine headline. On Aug. 22, the Associated Press reported bed bugs had been found in the basement of the Empire State Building and the story was picked up nationally. The Today Show and MSNBC ran lengthy segments on beg bug infestations at a New York City movie theatre; and NPR aired a story Aug. 21 discussing how bed bugs are not just back, but they are spreading wildly from New York to California, Ohio to Texas.
These recent reports reinforce trends that pest management professionals are seeing within their own customer bases: that the small, wingless insects are back with a vengeance and making their presence known in homes, hotels, retail establishments, office buildings, dorm rooms and daycare centers.
While a challenge to control, pest management professionals need to take a broad-spectrum approach in working with customers to minimize bed bugs’ impact and limit opportunities for infestations. Contrary to some news reporting, there ARE effective solutions available.
“No pest has shown a greater resilience than bed bugs and this influx of media stories underscores the importance of pest management professionals utilizing all the tools in their arsenals to help customers’ control infestations,” said John Neberz, Business Manager of the Zoëcon division of Central Life Sciences.
He continued, “Beg bugs can have a potentially substantial negative economic impact, and as a biting nuisance, can have an extremely debilitating effect on their victims. Pest management professionals need to provide education, prevention techniques and a portfolio of effective products to counter their spread.”
A variety of methods and products can be used to treat bed bug infestations including low-odor sprays, dusts and aerosols. And, pest management professionals must provide customers with a pre-treatment checklist to ensure that once applied, the products have the opportunity to work effectively.
Neberz explained that vacuuming, steam cleaning and hot water laundering of bedding items are essential in residential environments. Reducing clutter is a necessity in all areas prone to bed bugs because items strewn about rooms or open areas afford many places for the insects to hide and impedes inspection and treatment. Customers should caulk cracks and crevices where the bugs can thrive, such as around floorboards and moldings. Newer strategies such as “superheating” and mattress covers are additional tools to combat the pests.
In conjunction with customer control strategies, pest management professionals can utilize Insect Growth Regulators (IGRs) such as Gentrol® to combat the bed bugs. Neberz explained that IGRs have a strong history in controlling a wide variety of insects and keep populations under control by breaking the life cycle and preventing infestations from rebounding.
“As news stories have demonstrated, there are a lot of concerned and disgusted individuals and businesses across the country that want a solution to this rapidly spreading issue. For pest management professionals, being able to offer customers an IGR like Gentrol® is a smart part of an overall education and prevention strategy,” he said.
About Gentrol
Gentrol®, from the Zoëcon Professional Products division of Central Life Sciences, is an integral part of bed bug control and can be used in conjunction with an adulticide as part of a preventative IPM program. The primary mode of Gentrol® is to affect bed bug reproduction, resulting in lower populations that reduce the infestations.
Gentrol® travels deep into wall cavities, cracks and crevices, reaching bed bugs that other treatments miss, and it provides up to 120 days of long-term control. In addition, Gentrol® is an odorless, non-repellent formulation that has an excellent toxicity profile and is approved for use in sensitive accounts.
About Central Life Sciences
Zoëcon Professional Products is part of the Central Life Sciences strategic business unit of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ: CENT). Central Life Sciences is dedicated to creating healthier environments and making life better for people, plants and animals around the world. As inventors of insect growth regulator (IGR) technology more than 30 years ago, the founders of Central Life Sciences pioneered biorational pest control: using the insect’s chemistry as a means to reduce pest populations. To learn more about Zoëcon Professional Products and Gentrol®, call 1-800-248-7763 or visit our website at www.zoecon.com.