A relative discovered they are coeliac a little while ago, which was unfortunate given they were really into their bread making. They gave all their unopened or nearly full bags to me.
Come this morning I discover that not only are they full of flour mites, they've got into my own bags too. 4 full bags gone, plus 5 open bags.
Turns out flour mites aren't interested in gluten free flour or corn flour at least, as those are two of the only things left.
Any tips on how to clean the cupboard so they don't make a return are welcome!
by Sansarra
18 Comments
I keep my bags of flour in containers and have never heard of flour mites before.
I had that in a small restaurant I had for a while (long story, a second location). I had a floor drain with cuts in the concrete. The flour got into those stripes & so did the mites. It took me 2-3 years to get rid of them. They are persistent. Clean & clean. Spray & spray. Wrap up your new flour tight or store it somewhere else all together. Mine never got into the flour bags, but I watched them closely.
I just store my flour in the fridge. Never had mites but definitely have had moths which had led to this…
I keep flour in air-tight plastic containers and label them.
Pop them in the freezer for a few days and they’ll all die. Clean out your pantry.
The summer months are the worst. Not had mites, but weevils are the bane of my existence.
I stick all flour in the freezer for a week *minimum*. Kills everything. I still have to sift through the corpses. But at least nothing is moving or wriggling.
Unfortunately, where I live, 9 times out of 10 the flour will have bugs (and sometimes moths).
I don’t know what’s up with quality control, but I need flour and I can’t just throw everything away 🤷♀️
Does that one white bag (m&s) say 2022?
Are they all that old?
If you see pantry moths, or their larvae, I recommend sticky pheromone traps. They attract the males, which get stuck on the adhesive and therefore can’t breed. They’re available from old-school hardware stores, or online. The Dr. Killington brand has worked for me.
It might be worth investing in a couple to prevent future problems.
Get yourself some Cambros!
Put the flour into sealed containers. I just bought a 25-pound bag of flour, and it fits perfectly in a 5 gallon bucket I got from my previous restaurant. I was using a smaller 3 gallon bucket but went bigger. The bucket lids usually have a rubber seal.
Don’t buy more flour than you can use in a month or two.
If you notice, older recipes say to sift the flour. This was to get rid of damp lumps and weevils and mealy bugs.
That’s too bad, I think this happened because the flour sat on the shelf for far too long… it’s all long expired. So my only advice is to look each month through every pack and jar to make sure there is no criminal activity inside
If you want to keep using the flour then as another commenter said put them in the fridge/freezer to kill them and then do lots of sieving. I have a question tho, are these bags kept like they are shown in the picture? No clips on them at least? I keep my bags on top of my counter with one of those rlly wide chip clips to close it. Haven’t had flour mites in them up until now (knock on wood) but a lot of people like to keep their flour in new containers with an actual lid on them. If you can find these then I’d recommend a plastic cereal dispenser, you can put labels on them and they dont take up a lot of space
After a rash of weevils, I started putting every dry good including pasta and rice, in ziplock bags once I get them home. I cleaned all the cupboards, sprayed with an insectide and wiped down every kitchen and pantry surface by hand. Still have to be diligent about storage.
If you’re not keeping your flour in air tight containers then you can’t stockpile it. You gotta just buy a bag and use it.
Freeze the bags for a few days. That kills them off.
Put ‘em in the freezer, luv
As an avid opposer of sifting, I have one advice for you: sift.
I’ve never had any bugs in my flour. I guess it depends on where you live.