October 27, 2008
GHQ: Exterminating a Pesky Problem
By Carol Radice
Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is an excerpt of a current article from Grocery Headquarters magazine.
The topic of flies, roaches, rats and mice is enough to turn the most stalwart people a bit squeamish. For retailers, however uncomfortable insects and rodents might make them, pest control is a necessary part of business.
Unfortunately, infestations can happen at any store, warehouse or distribution center because, as experts note, the presence of food makes them an easy target.
“Grocery stores tend not to be located in the newest buildings and commonly share walls with other businesses making them a poor fortress for keeping out pests,” said Greg Baumann, senior scientist, vice president of technical affairs for the National Pest Management Association (NPMA). “Combine this with open doors in the back room and constant shipments being received and you see a situation ripe for an issue,” he noted, adding that newer stores are not exempt from pest issues.
Pest problems can crop up quickly in any retail environment, Mr. Baumann said.
“Pests need food, water and a place to hide and there is no shortage of places like that in a grocery store. The bulk of the issue is typically not seen until an infestation has already occurred because most pests prefer dark, hidden areas. This is not to imply grocery stores are not doing a good job with sanitation because I think they are,” he said, but noted that daily spills and breakages in the store contribute widely to the problem.
Mr. Baumann agrees that retailers and pest control companies need to work together to ensure the best outcome possible. “When it comes down to it, while the professional is the one who will take care of the problem, the retailer and their employees are most familiar with the store and are the ones there the most.”
Carl La Frate, president of ProCheck, a national food safety consultancy and licensed pest control applicator, said that increasingly, pest control and food safety audit scores are being tied to a store manager’s evaluation and ultimately their bonuses.
“In addition to holding the store manager answerable we need to start holding department managers responsible as well. If people reported things when they happen you can take corrective actions before they become a problem,” he said.
Discussion Question: Is pest control a major problem for the grocery industry? What solutions have you seen around infestation? Does the grocery industry need a more integrated approach for dealing with pest control issues?
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Grocery managers and supervisors should think like customers. If you were in a store and you saw a cockroach crawling across some edible product, would you ever in your right mind purchase that product? Way back when I was working as a manager, I made sure that my store had bi-monthly inspections (and I can tell you we were not selling food). This is all part of the image factor that contributes to the overall customer experience.
Whether its a grocery store or your own house, pest problems are a reflection of the people who occupy the structure. I’ve got clients in some of the worst areas of the country for pests. However, they have an obsessive compulsion for cleanliness. Sure it’s a problem but one that can be solved.
Pest control is paramount in the supermarkets, not only where consumers have view, but also behind the scenes. Consumers would be outraged if they could see some of the mess and trash in the warehouses where food is exposed. Employees leave fast food trash on back room tables and fruit is sometimes left in places in waiting that reflect poor choices.
It’s important to have professional exterminators but it’s even more important to keep all areas clean all day long where edible consumer products are exposed. This is also true for the suppliers that feed the supermarkets with the goods. Everyone along the “food chain” needs to be responsible.
The only way that stores and warehouses will be kept acceptably clean and free of insects and pests is if top management makes it a priority. They can not just give lip service to this issue. I have worked for two food manufacturers and at both, maintaining a clean location was a critical portion of your job evaluation, salary and bonus eligibility. In one, sanitation and pest control ranked as high as profit performance on your performance reviews. The point was that it was critically important to maintain a clean, safe workplace to protect the quality of the products produced and the consumers who purchased them. Everyone in management understood that and accepted that responsibility.
We had outside inspection services in addition to our own inspectors that would come unannounced to make certain that we were doing our jobs. They would rate you with very detailed reports and scores to judge how well you were doing. Your bonus was dependent on your getting as good or better a score than you had previously. Every time your senior manager would visit you, he would inspect your facility for compliance.
Problems of this kind only exist when top management does not make it a priority. If profit is more important than quality, you can expect problems. When you see a store, warehouse or restaurant with cleanliness or pest control issues, find another place to spend your dollars. If you can see it, what you can’t see is even worse.
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Grocery managers and supervisors should think like customers. If you were in a store and you saw a cockroach crawling across some edible product, would you ever in your right mind purchase that product? Way back when I was working as a manager, I made sure that my store had bi-monthly inspections (and I can tell you we were not selling food). This is all part of the image factor that contributes to the overall customer experience.
Whether its a grocery store or your own house, pest problems are a reflection of the people who occupy the structure. I’ve got clients in some of the worst areas of the country for pests. However, they have an obsessive compulsion for cleanliness. Sure it’s a problem but one that can be solved.
Pest control is paramount in the supermarkets, not only where consumers have view, but also behind the scenes. Consumers would be outraged if they could see some of the mess and trash in the warehouses where food is exposed. Employees leave fast food trash on back room tables and fruit is sometimes left in places in waiting that reflect poor choices.
It’s important to have professional exterminators but it’s even more important to keep all areas clean all day long where edible consumer products are exposed. This is also true for the suppliers that feed the supermarkets with the goods. Everyone along the “food chain” needs to be responsible.
The only way that stores and warehouses will be kept acceptably clean and free of insects and pests is if top management makes it a priority. They can not just give lip service to this issue. I have worked for two food manufacturers and at both, maintaining a clean location was a critical portion of your job evaluation, salary and bonus eligibility. In one, sanitation and pest control ranked as high as profit performance on your performance reviews. The point was that it was critically important to maintain a clean, safe workplace to protect the quality of the products produced and the consumers who purchased them. Everyone in management understood that and accepted that responsibility.
We had outside inspection services in addition to our own inspectors that would come unannounced to make certain that we were doing our jobs. They would rate you with very detailed reports and scores to judge how well you were doing. Your bonus was dependent on your getting as good or better a score than you had previously. Every time your senior manager would visit you, he would inspect your facility for compliance.
Problems of this kind only exist when top management does not make it a priority. If profit is more important than quality, you can expect problems. When you see a store, warehouse or restaurant with cleanliness or pest control issues, find another place to spend your dollars. If you can see it, what you can’t see is even worse.