Have you ever noticed flour bugs in your rice, cereal or pasta? Let’s talk about what they are exactly, how they got there, whether or not it’s safe to eat the food and what you can do to keep them from coming back!
Buying items in bulk is one of the best grocery saving tips that continues to work month after month, but I do wonder if the 50 pounds of flour sitting in my closet (in it’s original thick paper bag) is the best way to store it.
Growing up, my mom had mentioned something about flour bugs, but I’ve never seen them before. Or maybe I’ve just never noticed them before?
I admit – seeing flour bugs or even bugs in your whole grains, rice and pasta can be pretty gross – but all is not lost and in fact, it’s pretty common!
Why am I finding flour bugs?
This is a pretty loaded question, and one that often comes with more questions too. The best way I can think of addressing it all is to lay it all out, question-and-answer style.
Does flour go bad?
The short answer: Yes.
The long answer: The more processed the flour is, the longer it takes to go bad.
Flour is made from a whole grain, with the most common whole grain being wheat. Once the grain is no longer whole, the oils from the outer portion of the grain can go rancid (or sour, stale, etc.).
Freshly milled flour will go rancid much more quickly than store-bought all-purpose flour will. That’s because freshly milled flour will contain both the germ and the bran (natural oils are found in both of these places). All-purpose flour though, only contains the endosperm and very little oils.
This is why home bakers who grind their own wheat will make flour just before they use them in recipes.
Related: How to make flour without a grain mill
Where should we store flour?
Going back to the level of processing, all-purpose and other non-whole grain flours can be stored in a cool, dry place without any issues for about one year.
Whole grain flours should be kept in a refrigerator for the short term, about 2-5 days. If you need to store whole grain flour for longer than a handful of days, the freezer is the best place.
How should we store flour?
If the flour will be used fairly quickly, it can be left open or in a container with a lid.
Think about local bakeries and delis – they’ll often have a bucket of flour open on the counter or a lid may be slightly ajar. They will use a good bit of flour in a single day, so sealing it up tight isn’t an issue.
If the flour will be used within a month or two, it should be kept in a sealed container.
One to two months is considered “quick” in terms of flour usage, so you can keep your flour in a container that is NOT sealed (i.e. the same thick paper bag, rolled down) but the chances of the flour going rancid increase.
If the flour will not be completely consumed within two months, it should be stored in a sealed container.
What type of storage container is best for flour?
Depending on the quantity of flour on hand, there are food-grade buckets are available in a wide variety of sizes.
1 gallon buckets with lids would be best for daily use or the pantry. They’re light enough to move from counter to pantry and back, but big enough so that you’re not constantly refilling the flour every time you make bread.
3.5 gallon buckets with lids are best for keeping on the floor of the pantry or in a nearby closet. This is where you’d keep the majority of the flour, refilling the 1 gallon bucket with the flour from the 3.5 gallon bucket. These will be too heavy to easily use in daily baking, but not so heavy that you couldn’t slide it on the floor or pick it up if you absolutely had to.
5 gallon buckets with lids are best for long-term storage in a basement or garage or excess pantry. This size will be too big for most people, but is ideal for those who buy whole grains in bulk. You’d keep your whole grains in this bucket and bring the smaller 3.5 gallon bucket to this one when it’s empty for a refill. Then you’d grind your flour and fill up the small 1 gallon bucket.
Why are there flour bugs in grains?
If you notice little brown bugs in your flour, cereal, grain or rice, those are called weevils. Weevils look like little grains of rice, but they’re brown and they move. On their own.
Ever notice your flour tangled in something that looks like a cobweb? That means your flour is infested too.
Have no fear – flour bugs don’t just suddenly appear in your flour one day because you forgot to mop some mysterious sticky substance that one of your children accidentally spilled in your pantry. If you see flour bugs, they were already there when you bought it.
The female weevil lays eggs in the wheat kernel and it can sometimes survive the milling process. The eggs will hatch if they’re in warm or humid conditions, or have reached their maturity. The flour bugs eat the grain and then seek to mate… while eating more grain.
Why are there flour bugs in my boxed cereal?
Weevils aren’t particular about what they eat. If you find them in any other seemingly sealed spot, they’ve weaseled their way out of their original infestation spot and meandered to your rice, or cereal, or coffee.
Essentially, this means what you’ve already eaten was infested too.
Weevils are also not particular about containers. Thin cardboard boxes that cereal comes in, thin paper bags that flour comes in and even the plastic bags inside cereal and cracker boxes are no match for weevils.
The best containers to keep your dry goods in while keeping weevils out are these food-grade containers with lids that seal:
What can I do to prevent eating beetles?
1. Clean the Area.
First, get rid of the infested item.
Remove everything from the area, vacuum out any cracks and sanitize the shelves with white vinegar. If you’re sensitive to the smell of vinegar, make citrus-infused vinegar instead.
Check areas regularly for re-infestation as it may take awhile to completely rid of all flour bugs and larvae, and clean your storage area regularly.
2. Store dry goods properly.
Freeze newly purchased grains and flour for at least three days to kill any eggs. Some sources recommend freezing for up to one week. (Note that freezing will kill the eggs, but not remove them.)
As a general guideline, don’t buy more grain than you will use within four months. Store grains in a tightly sealed container, not a bag. Weevils are HUNGRY little devils and can eat through bags. (See my storage recommendations above).
3. Prevent Future Infestation
Adding whole bay leaves and garlic cloves to the area seems to deter flour bugs from setting up shop in your pantry. Garlic may leave a trace flavor in your baked goods, so if you don’t want that, go for the bay leaves instead.
Other Ideas for Preventing Flour Bugs
I haven’t tested all of these ideas myself, but if bay leaves and/or tea tree oil haven’t worked for you, readers also suggest:
- Food grade Diatomaceous Earth
- Lock & Lock Food Storage Bins
- Applying tea tree oil to a few cotton balls and place them throughout the pantry
- Dried Chilis
Will eating beetles harm me?
Other than give you the heebie jeebies, they’re harmless. In fact, the heat from baking kills the eggs and any beetles that may have made their way into your batter. So while the odds of us eating weevils – or have eaten weevils in the past – are high, the mortality rate is low.
Flour Bugs are very common. But there are ways to prevent them from showing up.
- Store your flour in food grade buckets with sealed lids – use 1-gallon, 3.5-gallon, or 5-gallon depending on where you are storing and how often you access your flour. Same goes for grain. (These storage bins would work well for everyday use.)
- Make sure to keep your pantry or storage area clean. Add bay leaves and garlic, cotton balls soaked in tea tree oil, or sprinkle the area with diatomaceous earth.
- Don’t sweat too much if you find evidence of the bugs. They won’t harm you! It’s just not too fun to eat bugs…
Want to learn why you should stock your pantry with grain or flour? A well stocked pantry is part of keeping your real food budget low! Buying in bulk and stockpiling is one of the key lessons in Grocery Budget Bootcamp, my signature eCourse for affording real food on a budget. The principles I teach in GBB are the real life ways I keep my family budget at $330 a month! Learn more HERE.
Grocery Budget Bootcamp enrollment is currently closed, but you can join my FREE 5-day Crush Inflation Challenge and start saving money on groceries tomorrow!
nicole schooper
i had a weevil problem a while ago. I cleaned everything out and they went away for a while but they came back in a few weeks. I searched the web for solutions on how to get rid of them and came across a product called Weevil Away. They have these little adhesive sticky pads that have a natural/organic solution on them. They repel the weevils which sounded like a great idea to me. I’d rather repel them in the first place rather than wait for them to show up and then try to get rid of them. I stuck one in every one of my cupboards and hoped for the best. The smell is fantastic and it’s been almost a year and still no weevils. Love this stuff!
Tiffany
Nichole,
Awesome job finding a natural solution to the weevil problem – and even better is that it works! ~Tiffany
Karina
Readers, beware! There are 30+ identical posts from “Nicole” online on pretty much every website that discusses the problem of weevils. “Nicole” is professing her love for Weevil Away on all of them without even a slight change in her message. Sounds a bit suspicious.
Tiffany
Thanks for the heads up Karina! 😉
Lea H @ Nourishing Treasures
Thank you for your submission on Nourishing Treasures’ Make Your Own! Monday link-up.
Check back tomorrow when the new link-up is running to see if you were one of the top 3 featured posts! 🙂
Miz Helen
Great Post! Have a fabulous weekend and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Veronica
I swear by the bay leaves…I scatter them in my cupboards and in my fabric stash after finding the bigger black/brown beetles running amok. Got rid of them & haven’t has any problems for over 12 years!
Selva Cavazos
Here is an old trick my mom taught me and it works. For rice and grains, especially polenta. I put 2 bay leaves in with the grains when I store it. And I have never had bugs. Try it and see.
Teri Gelseth
No weevils and never heard of pantry moths but definitely going to try the bay leaf thing and start some research because…. eeeew!
Thanks for sharing found you at Simple Life Thursday!
Ron
I read from somewhere that putting a bayleaf or two into the grains/flour will keep those bugs away so I’ve been putting some on mine and it works. Just thought I’d share that wee bit of info. 🙂
Tiffany
I think that’s one of the tips our grandmothers used to do before big glass jars were available at the home improvement stores, lol! Thanks for sharing Ron!
Kristen
I’ve had the cobwebby devils in my flour and cereal and almost everywhere. It took me years to get rid of them completely. Now I seal everything in glass jars with rubber seals and buy only small quantities. Found you at No Minimalist Here.
Lisa/Fresh Eggs Daily Farm Girl
Interesting post. I found you through DIY Dreamer and hope you will come share at my weekly Blog Fest. Lisa/Fresh Eggs Daily.
sparkling74
I don’t have a weevil problem but I do have the famous “pantry moth” which has, at one point, gotten into everything except my flour. The larvae are white worms that look like rice and they have been in my pasta, rice, spices. They bore right through plastic. Even the hard plastic containers! They love anything that has sugar or gluten in them. They turn into little moths. I’ve got them pretty much at bay but they are not totally gone. I know when they’ve gotten into something because there are those nasty webs everywhere. I’ve had to throw out so many things in my pantry. They even got into the peanut butter once.
You keeping 50 pounds of flour in anything but a sealed glass jar gives me the heebie geebies!! I just keep imagining what’s at the bottom of that bag!!!!
Tiffany
I’m working on a better solution, trust me. I’ve had a slight case of heebie jeebies too!
Emily
Hi i need help as i can lose my job they are in the pastas mealie meal and jungle oats all things that has wheat so customers are returning items what if the health inspector get that
What must i use please help
Kyare - Team Crumbs
You need to look into food grade items/tools. If you are selling things for people to eat then once you get your base ingredients you should sift or freeze them then store them in air tight containers. Be thorough in creating your products even if it takes more time. Moreover, rather then just needing a health inspector to pass your product Your customers are real people who deserve safe products.
Tori
Oh My. I’ve heard of these little bugs but have never seen them. Now I’m going to be on the lookout!!! Thanks for linking up at Tell Me Tuesdays!!
Hilary
oh yeah … pantry moths. I’ve fought that battle on more than one occasion! Fortunately have not had the privilege to meet a weevil. Yet.
I quit eating grains. Not because of bugs, just because, and have since discovered I have a bit of gluten sensitivity. I got my daughter almost off grains but still working on hubby and son. Now if I can just get son and hubby to go “primal” then all my bugs in the pantry problems will be solved! 😉
Tiffany
🙂 I don’t think I’ve seen “to rid house of weevils” as a reason to go grain free before!
Dennise
Goodnesss, I forgot to add that I keep my flours in the freezer for several weeks to kill anything that may have tagged along unbeknownst to me. I also keep my coconut, almond and rice flours in the fridge in closed glass containers. I hate plastic!
Dennise
I have had the weevils in the past, however one thing I am fighting now are pantry moths. I have read that they lay eggs in such places as behind the label on canned goods. I have tried everything mentioned to get rid of them, and yet they persist. I told dh that I was not going to toss my entire pantry full of food, but I know that if I could I would!
I thought of a bug bomb but there are not designed for small spaces. Grrrr….
Tiffany
I’ve heard those things are atrocious and stubborn! Are there natural remedies to rid them? Vinegar maybe? I know it repels ants.
Deon Bowman
I bought a bulk 8 pack of jiffy cornbread mix and just opened every single one to find this little bugs in them I freaked and found this article. It saved my life I will be spraying my cabinets with vinegar asap …. They where in the spaghetti and cream of wheat, mashed potatoes AND the plastic tubs I kept them in OH my.
Tiffany
Yikes! Those are pesky little buggers!!
Kimberlee Lukins
I got infested with pantry moths. They got into all of my Tupperware storage and into sealed bags. It was horrible! I threw everything away and cleaned the corners in my pantry where they make a little nest. I put the sticky traps out for pantry moths, and said “Take that, you little buggers!”.
Problem solved.
They came back! Several times! People said that in this area you just have to live with them but I couldn’t stand the thought of fighting over the last cup of flour with a moth when I wanted bread.
I found a machine at the hardware store that is tall and at the top it has a light on the inside with an opening allowing the moths to fly in. At the bottom there is a fan that sucks the little buggers into a space where they dry out and die. No more moths since I put that machine in the pantry! I wish I could remember the name of it, there is no label on it.
RON MANTLE
What hardware store did you find this machine that kills or traps moths ?
L.A.
It’s just called a zapper> We had millers from infested trees in Colorado, which are moths too. We kept the zapper outside on the back deck to get em. My mom also always had a bowl of soapy water on the counter also to attract them. They go for the suds I guess, get caught and fall in.
Sheryl
Maybe a few moth balls in your pantry. We had a problem with them in the bathroom upstairs. Our house is 116 years old and sat unoccupied for three years before we bought it. We took a mesh bag, threw a few moth balls in it and hung it in the closet where they were. Walla, no more moths. Don’t know how long you would have to be without your pantry but it’s worth a try.
Veronica Goldman
I had the moths complete with webs in a 20 pound bag of BENEFUL dog food. There were annoying moths appearing in my kitchen. I just happened tobe filling the dog food container from the bag by hand and it came out WEBBED!!!!! OMG. I freaked out but I got rid of them.
Now, I am faced with weevils. Bought a cake mix at Target and got the weevils at no extra charge. Three days in and I am still seeing occasional bugs. They fast become EX bugs. It’s ok. I seem to have grown up.
Susan LaDuke
***NEVER EVER use moth balls! Especially anywhere in the kitchen or near food! These are nearly 100% toxic & contain either napthalene or parachlorobenzene. The vapors are highly toxic and considered carcinogenic. The vapors emitted are respiratory tract irritants and can effect the eyes, lungs, and nervous system. They often cause headaches, dizziness, nausea and vomiting. They are very hazardous to infants and children and let’s. If just one mothball is eaten, Poison Control must be contacted.
Gloria Whitchurch
I found out that I was getting the ‘pantry’ moths from bulk wild bird seed, bought from the local feed store. I had a whole house full of them once, and fought them day and night!! Finally won, the, this autumn, say a couple hatching, flying out from the bird seed! Now, i keep that in metal storage, too, in old coffee cans!
Cherie
Bought a freezer just for my birdseed because of these seed moths. Couldn’t figure out where they were coming from as we had kept our birdseed in the garage in sealed storage containers. Then one day I opened a container and a gazillion of these things flew into my face. Eck. Now all birdseed purchased goes into my freezer for a week or so, then gets bagged into gallon sized ziplock bags and back into the freezer until I need to put it in the feeders. No more moths flying in the house. But it took a few months for me to find out where they were coming from.
After reading all these comments, I’m almost afraid to open my pantry. I have some pasta that has been in there for quite a while as well as a bag of unopened wheat flour that is about 5 months old. I’m just getting started on this whole foods stuff and have a LONG way to go and MUCH to learn. Last thing I want to deal with is bugs!
T'onna @ Navy Wifey Peters
I’m so glad you shared this information. I had some flour in a canister on my counter, and it had been there for a few months… and I was going to use it, until I saw little bugs moving around in it! I was so grossed out! So then I went to the pantry to get my new, unopened package of flour, and there were bugs in there, too! I threw it out as well and figure out something else to cook that didn’t require flour. My husband said, “Cooking it would kill the bugs. You could’ve still used it.” Ummm ewww! No! I was grossed out! lol
Tiffany
LOVE that your husband didn’t care about the bugs! That’s so funny!
whisperingsage
Throw it to the chickens, if you don’t have chickens, get some, they are fun and clean up kitchen waste and convert it to eggs.
L.A.
You can use a screen mesh strainer or flour sifter each time you use flour. Just put measured amount in the sifter or strainer over a separate bowl. Whatever we don’t want, will be left in sifter to discard making the flour ok at that point. Although, I know it is very gross!! I had to toss all my spices recently because of the cobweb effect. Was disgusting!!!! So, now I put spices in glass spice jars. Don’t know if that matters, but it looks like from what you’v e all said, I’m on the right track with the glass. Thank you so much. Never had either until I moved to Cal. Brace yourselves!! I once found a live roach in my flour stored in the glass like clear plastic canister with rubber airtight sealed lids! I fainted for half a second! Came to before I hit the floor thank goodness. Was worst think ever!!! We moved after that
David Vosper
The cob-webs are from grain moths. Found them in the food in my bird-feeder.
Linda
Freeze it as soon as you bring it home.
Tiffany
Yes – coffee! Those bugs really don’t care what they eat. Nothing is safe!
Christine Walcheske
Yes I first really noticed them in my dog’s food and wanted to take it back to Pet Club and make them replace it because I had just opened it and it was very expensive. My two Labs are my children and I don’t want them eating bugs either.
Linda
Be careful, hard dog food can eventually produce maggots. Happened to us when our dog died, and we gave our neighbor the left over dog food….we felt so bad.
S. Mujahid
maggots can develop as well with white potatoes left out. I refrigerate potatoes immediately after buying them. as for what I call ‘wheat bugs,’ old fiber bars I had in my trunk (to give to the birds) had been turned into what looked like sawdust and had been infested by those tiny critters. eww. quite a gross discovery!!
Wendy
Haven’t had weevils for awhile, but the other day I made rice and there were three tiny bugs floating on top of the water. They were beetles of some kind. Dead. Kinda gross, but I tossed them and we ate the rice. 😉
Tiffany
LOL – great minds think alike!!
Heather
I have done that before. It took some VERY strong convincing. (Convincing myself not to toss it, I didn’t tell anyone else😲)
Mary Katherine
Oh no ! I’m paranoid now. You’ll probably have me inspect every bag of flour and rice from here on out.
I’ve seen people use those large plastic containers with a seal-able lid… may resort to that next : )
Sheryl
I use lock-n-lock containers for sugar and flour. I also keep rice, pasta, cereal and other wheat-based items to keep bugs where they are. So far after 4 years of using them, no bugs found.
andrea
I use lock and lock too. Just pulled out my rice. Haven’t had rice in a long while and just bought new rice at the store to pop into the storage container. Guess what? The 1/2 cup of rice I had left was INFESTED WITH 100 bugs! OH MY GOD! I use the lock and lock! I am guessing the bugs came with the rice. I am paranoid about these bugs because I had them once in my 20’s and it took forever to get rid of them. We had to call an exterminator (landlord did). The rice and grains we eat today are all organic. Maybe that’s why these little buggers were in there. They obviously came from the store because there isn’t a single bug in any other container NOR on the shelving. GROSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! UGH! to see a hundred of them made me want to throw up. The rice doesn’t evenlook like rice anymore. They shredded it to dust.
Linda
Yup! I hear ya. I got rid of all the pasta I had that was infested with those evil bugs. Sprayed the cupboards with a mixture of vinegar and water, and have not had any problems since. And now all the flour and pasta I bring home, I put in the freezer for days before putting in the cupboard and then store in either zip lock bags, or seal tight plastic containers
.
Allison
You poor thing! That is awful. I am so tired of insects! I live in Detroit where we are experiencing a bed bug epidemic. Count your blessings if flour weevils are your niggest insect problem.. O have had brd bugs biting me all night. My dad refused to take any action while I sprayed and searched high and low for their hangout. Then my dad’s doctor told him he couldnt come back until he got rid of the bugs. My dad was so embarassed that he came right home and called Orkin! And they got rid of the nasty critters. So flour bugs are just a nuisance. Throw anything with bugs in the outside garbage. And relax.
Nancy
Did Orkin solve your problem? Cousin has them, she was told the only way to get rid of them is to have the house tented. Instead they went with another company that steamed the house. They still have them.
Judy
Bake that stuff before you store it! You are right about organically too. We could learn a thug or two from bugs and dogs. They know what’s good for you!
So, pour your grains into a pan, bake them in a 150 degree oven until they are thoroughly heated. Let cool and package in glass. Viola! Easy-peasy, NO bugs will grow in there bc the eggs are DEAD!
Judy
Bake that stuff before you store it! You are right about organically too. We could learn a thing or two from bugs and dogs. They know what’s good for you!
So, pour your grains and flour into a pan, bake them in a 150 degree oven until they are thoroughly heated. Let cool and package in glass. Viola! Easy-peasy, NO bugs will grow in there bc the eggs are DEAD!
Ant
I have frozen flour for two weeks then put it in a sealed 5 gallon container with sealed lid. So far so good. Until yesterday – taking the empty bag out the bucket , there were hundreds in the remaining flour cans bottom of bucket. It really upset me as three bags like this we had nothing. I always freeze in the original 55lb bag at -18c for weeks. So today I’m opening two bags , one been frozen 6 months and I’m decanting into 21b paper bags before sticking inside a foodsaver bags and vacuum sealing. The other bag is from supplier last month , I’m going to do same with that but freezing process once in smaller bags.
wilma dyer
just opened a sealed container of flour still in the bag and it was moving with
weavils so containers are no good to stop the beasties if they are already in the flour.
Tiffany
Wilma – if you have a bag of flour in a container, it’s not that the container isn’t keeping the weevils out; they were already in the bag when the bag was put in the container!
Marlee
I have had a bag of flour n my cupboard for about a year, still sealed like I bought it. How do you keep flour for a long time, if you don’t do a lot of baking.
Tiffany
For long term storage of whole grains (i.e. whole wheat flour) it’s recommended to keep it in the freezer so the naturally occurring oils don’t go rancid. For all-purpose flour, you can store it in large containers.
Linda
Put it in the freezer.
Nicole
Do they come in white flour to or just wheat
Christine Walcheske
Yes I have learned that the hard way. Everything I buy goes in a sealed container when I get home from the store. I recently poured myself a bowl of granola cereal and was absolutely horrified when I looked down and saw those little black devils doing the backstroke in the milk. I had wondered why it had tasted so exceptionally good the day before. LOL. Then I couldn’t eat it or any cereal because I kept thinking about the show Monsters Inside Me. If you ever saw the show you’d stop eating too.😂🤣🤣🤣😂
Linda
Any pastas, grains or flours should be put in the freezer to kill any of the larva that might exist in there, when you bring it home. Since we’ve had an infestation of those evil devils in our pasta, I put all that stuff in the freezer as soon as we get home from the grocery store.
Dawn Hill
I feel the same way. I bought a bag home from the store. Open the bag and I not see anything until it was done cooking. So my guess the bugs was in there when the store gets it. Now I feel like fasting from any kind of grains from the store.
Heather
I have dealt with them a lot since we moved to Cali. Never dealt with them(or maybe never noticed them) in Indiana. Even though they are harmless I have to throw the stuff out when I find them! Now I take stuff out of the container and as soon as I get it home and put it in glass containers that seal really well. Unfortunately I just found more this morning so, I have to do more cleaning and tossing! 😤
Deanne
As she stated in the article, to help with getting rid of infestations and to keep them from coming in on new purchases. Freeze new purchases for a couple of days then put into containers. For infested areas use vinegar to clean the areas multiple times over a period of time to kill off eggs, larva and adults.
Linda
Yes, Deanne, this definitely works.
Linda
Unfortunately, in some of the products purchased, there is already the larva in there, so if you don’t freeze them after buying, they, morph into those nasty bugs.
Michelle
I used plastic with resealable lids, my rice, chick peas and kidney beans all got infected wirh the little blighters!
Carolyn
I sure didn’t mean to make you wonder about your storage method. I’ll be keeping mine (25 pounds that I just bought) in some containers that my husband will be bringing me home from work. I don’t need a 2-year-old getting into the flour and making a mess. He did that last night!
My mom keeps a couple of bay leaves in her flour to keep the bugs from hatching. She doesn’t go through it as fast as I do and I have never seen any bugs in the flour. I’ll probably do that too, just to be on the safe side.
Tiffany
Oh, it’s a good worry Carolyn. Eating bugs isn’t exactly high on my to-do list! a 2yr old making a mess in the flour? No… never! 😉
I read the bay leaf thing too, but wasn’t able to confirm it’s reliability. Great to know it works!
john bunn jr
I’ve heard that cedar repels the bugs too, anyone know?
Meera Butalia
Yes, most insects are repelled by cedar oil. I have a natural spray for ants and it works for cockroaches too and it’s made with cedar oil. So cedar leaves just may do the trick. Please try it and do let me know if it works. I would have to travel to the foothills of the Himalayas to get the leaves 😉
Diana Martin
I just keep my flour in the freezer and my bread crumbs in the fridge.
Rhonda Atkinson
We used to store wheat in 5 gallon buckets. If you
want it to stay fertile and bug free use bay leaves. If you don’t care to ever plant it you can place some dry ice in the bucket with a paper plate over the ice then put the wheat over the plate and seal the bucket….. No more bugs !
Joann J Molek
How do I use the D.E.? Do I put a bowl of it out? Thanks!
Kat
I use it in boxes of stored books, and read online that they will not cross a thick application of DR, so it doesn’t kill them. They will walk over a light dusting and die.
Karan
What exactly is that ? Where do I buy it?
Lola Montoya
You mean if the eggs are already hatched on new flour at the store, there’s no way to find out if it’s not contaminated?
thomas smith
yep, in my experience grits, cream of wheat ALL have them, but you wont know unless you let it sit for a while
David Vosper
Diatomaceous earth is the fossilized bodies of tiny diatoms that lived in the sea thousands of years ago. Their remaining calcified bodies are covered with microscopic sharp spikes. DE comes as a dry white powder. When insects get exposed to DE the spines pierce their bodies and they dehydrate in the dry powder desiccant .
Cathie
Yep, once – in a box of pasta, and once in a bag of rice. Incidentally, I “store” my gi-normous bag of all purpose flour the same way you do, with the bag rolled down. I keep meaning to get a bucket for it. First, though, I take all I can out and store in sealed Tupperware in my baking cabinet. THEN the rest gets “stored” in the rolled down bag. Then I use the bag first, hopefully dimishing the possibility of it going bad (or getting buggy.)
PAUL
I FOUND WITH TUPPERWARE PLASTIC A BACTERIA WEDGES INTSELF ON THE SURFACE NOT SURE WHAT IT IS AND IT BECOMES IMPOSSIBLE TO CLEAN IT, I USE COMET AND OR DAWN AND I SEE WHAT APPEARS TO BE FLEAS OR SOMETHING, FOUND PLASTIC IS NOT GOOD BUT GLASS IS BEST WITH THE SEAL NIGHT CLAMP.
PAUL L
CALIFORNIA
Kathy Jackson
What about dog / cat food or treats?
Angelo Nastov
Nylabone edible treats/toys are infested with wheat weevils, to the point that Costco refuses to by them in quantities. I am a dog treats owner and manufacturer.
Geri
I’ve had to throw out two boxes of Milk Bone brand tiny bone-shaped treats-the Tri-flavored ones because of bugs. Yesterday, I emptied the pantry—flour, cereal, crackers, -everything had to go, including more dog treats. The sugar and corn starch ‘seem’ to be ok, but watching them.
Linda
I put flour in the freezer as soon as I bring them home to kill any foreign bugs or whatever in there . and then transfer to air tight plastic bins. And since recently experienced many mealy bugs in all of my pasta boxes, I will now put any future pasta purchases directly into the freezer, before transferring into zip lock baggies. And I sprayed all of my cupboards with a mixture of vinegar and water before replacing any food items back in there. Air tight jars were fine with pastina, no problems with any bugs.
Ali
This sounds like a good idea…. does the freezing harm the food in any way though?
Terry pogue
I had rice in a good sized plastic container with a nice fitting lid. That didnt keep them out. The rice i have vacuum sealed the original plastic bag is fine. They didnt get to that.
Silfredo
So does that mean they find their way in at home? We looked everywhere and couldn’t see them in the storage area, except for the rice bucket. I just assumed it came from the store that way, or at least with the eggs and they hatched in the rice bucket.
James
I bought a large box of Bisquick and placed it (unopened) in my freezer (-4 degrees F.) for two weeks. When I opened the box, 15-20 of the bugs were staring back at me. I even have bugs in Splenda.
thomas smith
you are right, the bugs are NOT coming from your cabnits, but they are already in the cereals! I had a kitchen renovation , new cabinets; found cream of wheat on sale . bought 4 boxes, about two months later opened a box and damn bugs were in it!!!!. also grits have the bugs in them. BUT oatmeal never has bugs in it!!
Mrs M
I found a massive infestation of bugs in a pot of nutritional yeast this evening, then checked my cupboards and also found them in an airtight glass jar of rice and a bag of rice sealed with a clip. I still need to check my flours! The thought of how many of the critters I might have eaten gives me the heebie jeebies! It has been extremely hot here for the past month or so and they were items I had had in the store cupboard a long time. Thank you for the advice on getting rid of them and hopefully preventing their return!
Kyare - Team Crumbs
Good luck, Mrs.M!