Termites Challenging State’s Pest Control Operators

Termite control fastest growing portion of business

Auburn, April 20, 2004—Nobody wants roaches in the house or fire ants in the yard, but termites are the pests generating the most business for the state’s pest control businesses.

More than 90 percent of pest control operators at a recent meeting said termite control was the predominant service they provided.

“More than half of those surveyed said termite control was also the fastest growing portion of their business,” said Dr. Xing Ping Hu, an urban entomologist with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System.    

She said termite control was a double-edged sword for most pest control operations.    

“It is the most important segment of the industry in terms of income.  Approximately 65 percent of survey respondents identified termite control as the most profitable service they offered,” said Hu, whose work focuses on controlling termites and other pests associated with home environments. 

“But, it is also identified as the service that entailed the greatest liability. More than 90 percent considered the treatment of termites to be the number one liability facing the pest control industry.”

More than three quarters of those surveyed ranked termite control highest both in terms of expense and difficulty in treatment.  Other pests ranked far below termites. 

Hu added that respondents indicated by a more than two-to-one margin that the number of termite-related claims had increased during the last five years.

“Those claims have continued to rise in spite of the use of newer, presumably more effective, control products.  The products commonly used included both new and traditional liquids, baits and combinations of products.  Almost all the respondents felt that the termite control business was becoming more competitive and difficult over time.”

Pest control operations face a number of challenges is battling termites.

“It is vital they select appropriate control technologies to deal with termites because of the difficulty of treatment, extensive liability and changing governmental and environmental regulations,” said Hu. 

In order to maintain their commercial pesticide applicator licenses, employees of pest control businesses must attend a minimum number of continuing education programs.

Hu said the survey showed the importance of the Alabama Cooperative Extension System to the state’s pest control industry.

“More than 90 percent of those surveys indicated that Extension’s Urban Entomology program was their most important, and in many cases sole, source of information and training.”

Each year, Extension conducts a number of pesticide education meetings around the state to provide free continuing education programs to applicators in commercial pest control as well as agribusiness.

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