Every night, all around the world, we are breaking bread with uninvited dinner guests. These furry fellows -often illustrated as charming, friendly companions- are nothing more than free loading ne’er-do-wells. And like an old friend from college, rodents are the worst kind of customer… the non-paying kind.
Rats and mice are commensal animals, meaning they live in a relationship in which one organism obtains food and sustenance from another without benefiting it. The word Commensal derives from the Latin prefix com-, meaning “with, together,” and the Latin adjective mensalis, meaning “of the table.”
The EPA estimates that there is just over a half pound of waste produced per meal in a commercial kitchen. Restaurants and food distributors are not alone in creating excessive waste. In 2018 the EPA estimated that each person in the US creates 4.9 pounds of waste per day on average. Given that rats only need a half ounce of food per day (even less for mice), you can see how rodent populations grow out of hand.
So, do we have a rodent problem or a trash problem? Well…
Metropolitan areas in particular struggle with trash collection. The demand for accessible space in an ever-growing city takes presidence over storing trash effectively. Combine that with litter and overflow and you have the exact condition rodents need to thrive
Trash collection is a particular strain on businesses. Many municipalities have a laissez-faire approach to waste remediation. Businesses have to pay for their own trash collection through private companies. The collection companies have to operate large vehicles in condensed areas, and often the trash receptacles are not accessible when trash pick up arrives.
On the other hand…
It’s not really the rat in the dumpster that concerns our customers. The real issues are the rodents that get inside. After all, rats and mice need shelter just as much as they need food. Rodents are highly invasive, but generally they do not have to work very hard to get in. That’s because the number 1 way rodents get inside of a business is… (insert your own drumroll sound effects)
Right through the wide open door!
That’s right, we welcome them right in to our air-conditioned well kept stores and eateries, filled with delicious foods and wonderful smells. Sure they will find other points of entry. But time after time, business after business, we have found rodents walking right in through the open door.
Regardless of how they got there, rodents are disease vectors and it is critical that they be kept out
of your facility. Rodent control requires Presto’s urgent honest approach, with strict standards and thorough plans of action. If you are facing challenges with rodents, or want to stay ahead of the tide.
Contact us today to set up an inspection and get a no-obligation quote.