Report advises pest control companies to target processing plants
they traditionally rely on staff to keep insects and rodents at
bay, according to a new report.
A Kline & Company research report shows that, in general, restaurants and other facilities operating kitchens are almost entirely dependent on pest management companies for monitoring, diagnosis and treatment.
Meanwhile warehouses and food processing plants, while relying heavily on pest management professionals, are somewhat more likely to use employees for this activity.
The market analysis estimates there are about 42,000 food processing plants in the US.
"In a mature market like commercial pest control, new growth opportunities can be as scarce as a dragonfly in the desert, but food processing plants and newly opened restaurants may offer the best chance for pest control companies and their chemical suppliers to increase market share," Kline & Company stated.
The firm's data indicates that about 25 per cent of food processing plants still use their own employees to coordinate pest control management, as opposed to an outside pest control company. More than 90 per cent of restaurants, kitchens, and warehouses -- which make up the bulk of the food-handling pest control market -- use contractors.
While food processing plants represent a smaller market segment overall, each plant is a high-value source of potential revenue for both the pest control companies and pesticide marketers, Kline & Co. stated.
"If you know that you're peaked out in restaurants, and that 90-plus per cent of them already have a pest control operator, you have to grow by taking share from somebody else," stated Dennis Fugate, a manager in Kline's market research division. "On the other hand, if you can get a plant to convert to pest control, a single plant is probably worth 10 or more restaurants in terms of volume, though they're a smaller segment of the market."
Kline's study pegs the US market for professional pest control services at $5 billion in 2004. Commercial food-handling activities represent a market worth estimated $1 billion in service revenue and $100 million in chemical use.
Commercial food handling involves more than 600,000 establishments across the continental US. Of that total, there are more than 42,000 food processing plants, including everything from canneries and bakeries to slaughterhouses and meat packagers.
"For pest control marketers, the continued use of employee-managed pest control by a good number of food processing plants indicates a dual strategy is needed to ensure full coverage of the market -- one that targets not only the pest control segment but also examines where food processing companies purchase pest control products," stated Mancer Cyr, senior associate in Kline's specialty pesticides consulting practice.
The study also found an undercurrent of dissatisfaction in the market regarding methods for dealing with flies, specifically in food processing plants. However, some of the dissatisfaction may also be an indicator of the persistence of the problem.
"In completing our survey, we noted that there's a definite interest in new product forms and finding safer ways to handle fly problems with reduced exposure to pesticides," Kline stated. "Flies are tough, though. You open the door for 10 seconds and you might end up with a fly infestation, regardless of how clean the facility is."
As a result pest management companies are looking to address the issue by developing methods that focus on exclusion. They are tending to teach clients to improve sanitation and keep doors closed, as opposed to using chemicals.
