Sealed box and envelop yet the bugs are in the cake mix. How do you prevent this?





Most of the time, moth and worm larvae enter a box of food from the outside because they are attracted by the starch in the glue that holds the box together. Once they eat through the box, they find a veritable cafeteria that could feed them for a long, long time.

I normally put any mixes (cake, pancake, and flour) in a plastic container. I cut out the name of the substance, any instructions, and place it in the plastic container as well (or taped to the front if the container isn't clear), so that I have all I need when I'm ready to use it. You can get clear plastic containers cheap and most dollar stores. Saves me a lot of worry about anything getting into the mix before it's used.

The ziplock type storage bags work well. The gallon sized bags even allow you to put the entire container in them. They will hold a 2 Kilo or 5 pound bag of flour.

Great advice

I defer to our pest expert, but my experience (and from what I've read) is that the Indian meal moth, also called pantry moth and other names, can lay eggs through a ziplock bag.
I had to buy expensive OXO containers for everything, living in a rural area, but I'm happy I did.

the Indian meal moth, also called pantry moth and other names, can lay eggs through a ziplock bag.


I'd love to read that. I would guess the seal on the bag and how tightly it's packed could allow them to chew through the plastic, but I've not seen it. In this area the other pantry moth (Angoumois Grain Moth) is more common.

Pantry Moths (http://npic.orst.edu/pest/pantrymoth.html)