Birds: A Flying, Nesting Risk for Your Facility
From human health risks to building and equipment damage, birds can be some of the most difficult
pests to control for the food processing industry. Knowing your options and even knowing the tips and
tricks to help make your facility less attractive to birds can help keep these nesting nuisances at bay.
Birds may be the most difficult of all pests to confront in the food industry, yet the need to control
them is essential for food safety and audit compliance. Birds, including their droppings, feathers and
nesting materials, carry about 60 different pathogens of concern to product and worker safety. Bird
droppings present slip and fall hazards and can be corrosive. Nesting materials can clog equipment air
intakes and exhausts. Needless to say, auditors do not want to see birds or bird filth. Compared to
other pests, birds have unique mobility, vision and intelligence. Bird control is complicated by human
sympathies and affection for birds. The general public, or even some employees, will probably not
tolerate seeing birds in distress, injured or killed. However, most control methods are non-lethal.
The Problem for Food Processors
The fundamental requirements that birds have are the same as other pests: food, water and
harborage. Many food processing facilities offer all three in abundance as well as other factors that
can attract birds, including:
- Spillage of grain, flour or other ingredients from the roof-top all the way down to surrounding
grounds. - Very tall structures such as grain elevators or towering buildings that naturally appeal to cliff
dwelling birds like pigeons. - Covered roof areas with good exposures for flocking birds to find sun or shade.
The most conducive condition for a bird infestation may be cavities for nesting in the corrugations of
roofing materials and other areas. Bird situations can develop over time so an issue may take years to
fully develop. For example, if a few birds found places to nest years ago without much notice or
concern, it could become an ancestral rookery for a colony of birds in addition to all the other
attractions that may be provided. One of the most difficult pest issues to overcome is the attachment
of birds to a nesting site.
Customizable Solutions for Your Facility:
It usually requires a bird specialist to analyze the attractive features and how birds are using a site
(assessment of bird pressure or bird attachment to the site) to determine the best course of action.
Once an assessment is done, there are 100 or more fairly distinct devices or methods for bird control.
Though no single device or method can guarantee success, often a few carefully selected tactics will
be effective in combination. The level of bird pressure will dictate the best selections. There are also
differences in behavior among the common pest birds, and the susceptibility of the target species to
a device or method needs consideration as well. When bird control is needed, you should look for a
specialist with the capabilities to analyze a food plant situation, make reasonable recommendations
that are achievable through a food plant and pest control provider partnership, and has the ability to
take on the scale of installation work that may be necessary.
Categories of Bird Control Methods and Devices:
- Chemical controls: Avicides (pesticides), baits, harassment chemicals and repellents
- Physical controls: Visual and audio scare devices, trapping, exclusion devices
There is no single silver bullet for solving bird problems. Like other pest control methods, bird
management requires an integrated approach. There are more than 100 different legitimate tools,
techniques and devices that can potentially be brought to bear. Often, the solution comes down to a
combination of sanitation measures, exclusion and harassment devices that have been skillfully
chosen and installed to counter the ways birds have been using a site.
In some cases, netting is needed to exclude birds from certain areas, but in others, certain devices to
exclude them from ledges or perches are more appropriate. In certain cases, a variety of harassment
or scare devices can be effective.
When An Outdoor Problem Comes Indoors:
Almost every building is susceptible to an occasional bird flying in through an open door. Susceptibility
increases with multiple doors and becomes even more of a risk with dock doors. Indoor birds are an
immediate food safety hazard or risk for finished product rejection if droppings are found on product.
Since susceptibility is universal, every facility should have an emergency plan for dealing with indoor
birds.
Here are some immediate actions that should be taken:
- Attend to the most critical food safety risks. Exclude the bird from entering the most critical
processing areas where products are exposed. Be prepared to cover critical lines and equipment
quickly. - Try to allow the bird to fly out. Consider darkening the space and giving the bird an open-door
opportunity. Try coordinating a crew of people to herd the bird toward an opening with flashlights or
laser pointers. Birds will be drawn to the light of an open window or door in a dark area. - Be prepared with some equipment for fast trapping of indoor birds. Indoor birds often fall into the
same patterns of flying – certain racetrack patterns or alleyways, or certain roosting spots are used
repeatedly. Mist nets, very fine nets shaped like oversized volleyball nets that are invisible to birds,
can be put up in flyways very quickly to entrap flying birds.
Bird control is an important ingredient in the recipe of integrated pest management for food
processing facilities. Birds can cause a myriad of issues and are difficult to control, so it’s imperative
that you work with your provider to develop a comprehensive, proactive plan for dealing with these
destructive pests. When there is a plan in place and your staff is aware of the procedures and
protocols, your team will be a unified force against all pests, and especially birds.
KLM HIGH-giene SOLUTIONS provides cost effective pest management solutions, such as bird control,
suited for your business. Please contact us for a free quotation on bird proofing and control solutions.
Article by: Jerry Heath, BCE (Board Certified Entomologist)