Pune: Pest control companies in the city are witnessing a sharp rise in orders from eateries following the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) crackdown.Strict guidelines and swift action by the authorities have prompted restaurants, cloud kitchens, cafes and even small bakeries to assess their pest management practices.“We are getting a higher number of inquiries from restaurants, cloud kitchens, and bakeries for pest control services. Even small cafes, which never carried out comprehensive pest control treatments, want to get it done. They all want to comply with the guidelines set by the state FDA. Pest control is done for the entire establishment, including the kitchen and associated outdoor areas,” said Manoj Bhosle, who runs Relief Pest Control.The firms said restaurants want authentic certificates and are also seeking maintenance contracts to avoid infestations and ensure compliance. “We have seen a 20% increase in orders from eateries. We do an all-round treatment for mosquitoes, cockroaches, rodents and other pests so that the establishment can maintain hygiene standards. This surge in orders has been an outcome of stricter enforcement by food safety officers,” said Tanay Bhandare, who runs Zkeet Pest Control by Healthy Bagicha.“No one wants to take a chance with the FDA. There have been many cases where licenses were suspended due to poor hygiene standards. We, as an industry, are already going through tough times and cannot afford a setback. We have now prepared for any surprise inspections,” said a restaurant owner at Camp.Cloud kitchen owners are also working on adhering to the FSSAI guidelines on pest control and management. “We have always maintained top-notch standards for pest control at the cloud kitchen. We, however, would improve the frequency of the pest control and ensuring that all the certificates have been up to date,” said a cloud kitchen owner at Wanowrie.Another reason for such a rise in pest control services is the monsoon, when mosquitoes and flies increase. “We get a lot of calls for mosquito and fly infestations during the monsoon. We have to visit the premises multiple times to treat it because one-time visit would not help control them,” said Akshay Chavan, manager at City Pest Control and Consultant.Apart from eateries, pest control firms are also seeing good demand from housing societies and bungalow owners. “In the monsoon, damp conditions and waterlogging create ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes, cockroaches, termites and rodents. We notice a lot of these pests during the season and have decided to get a contract with the service provider,” said Anita Agarwal, a resident of NIBM.
