Best practices to manage cockroaches

Dr. Sally Abbar, Field Development Scientist, Bayer Pest Management & Public Health

Successful cockroach management is essential for protecting public health. Following a few best practices can help pest management professionals manage these pests effectively and economically:

• Inspection: When doing a sweep for cockroaches, look for certain signs and conducive conditions for infestations. These include fecal matter, egg cases, cast skins and carcasses. Record your findings, and communicate them clearly with customers.
• Identification and monitoring: Positive identification of cockroaches by species is key to any cockroach management plan. This will help you understand the biology and behavior of the specific cockroach species.
• Treat common areas: After interpreting your inspection and monitoring data, apply dust insecticides for a fast and significant reduction in cockroach populations in harborage and to-be-treated areas. Treat cockroach travel routes along edges and corners of walls, as well as places where they find food and water.
• Prevention and control: Controlling cockroaches also requires non-chemical actions. Communicate with customers by sharing observations and recommendations for long-term control. Help them understand the importance of proper sanitation, sealing cracks and crevices, storing food in cockroach-proof containers, emptying trash containers frequently, and picking up pet food. These actions require effective communication skills that will build a solid partnership with customers.

Creating and following a comprehensive cockroach management plan will contribute to your success and customer satisfaction. This can lead to a strong service reputation, and more opportunities for business growth.