- Biscuit beetle
- 2–3 mm, reddish brown
- Grain weevil
- 3–4 mm, dark, long snout
- Indian meal moth
- 8–10 mm, two-tone wings
- Flour mites
- Barely visible, like moving dust
A thorough clear-out usually solves it in an afternoon. The trick is being ruthless about checking everything, including the things you'd never suspect.
Signs of pantry pests
- Tiny brown beetles in cupboards or walking up the kitchen wall, sometimes at windows
- Small moths with copper and grey wings fluttering in the kitchen at dusk
- Webbing, clumped food or caterpillars in packets of cereal, nuts or dried fruit
- Small round holes in packets
- Flour or grain that seems to move, or has a minty smell (flour mites)
How to be sure
Biscuit beetles are tiny, round-ish and reddish brown. Weevils have a long snout and live inside grains of rice or pasta. Indian meal moths have wings that are pale grey near the body and coppery at the tips. Clothes moths are plain golden-beige and stay in wardrobes, not cupboards.
What you can do yourself
- Empty the whole cupboard. Check every dry food: flour, rice, pasta, cereals, nuts, dried fruit, spices, stock cubes, chocolate, pet food and bird seed.
- Bin anything infested in a sealed bag, straight into an outside bin.
- Vacuum shelves, corners, shelf-peg holes and the gaps at the back. Then wipe down.
- Freeze any food you want to keep but aren't sure about for at least four days.
- Store dry food in airtight containers from now on.
- Use a pantry moth pheromone trap to check the moths have gone.
Call a professional if
- Rarely needed in homes
- Consider it if you run a food business, or the problem persists after two thorough clear-outs
Safety: Eating a few of these insects by accident isn't harmful, but throw away infested food.
Keeping them out
- Decant dry goods into airtight containers
- Buy smaller quantities of rarely used flours and grains
- Check packets for holes before buying
- Clean cupboards out every few months
Kit that helps
- Airtight food containers
- Pantry moth pheromone traps
- Vacuum with a crevice tool
Product types only. We'll only ever point you to things we'd use ourselves.
Questions people ask
Where did the bugs come from?
Almost always from a packet that was already infested when you bought it. Once out, they spread to other dry food.
Do pantry moths eat clothes?
No. Indian meal moths eat food. If you have moths in a wardrobe, they're clothes moths, which are a different species.
Is flour with weevils safe to eat?
It won't harm you, but most people prefer to throw it away. Check other grains nearby too.
Do I need to throw everything away?
Only what's infested or unsealed. Sealed tins and jars are safe. Freeze anything you're unsure about.