While most food manufacturing facilities use some control techniques for the reduction of filth flies, there has been less success in developing a numeric assessment of the level of monitoring and control of flying insects.
However, glue board-based insect light traps, which are already in widespread use in the food handling industry, can provide this numeric assessment. They are one of the most acceptable fly control solutions for use within a food handling facility and contribute successfully to reducing or eliminating the food contamination potential.
Brandenburg Easy Count Glue Board
The Brandenburg Easy Count Glue Board was developed as a specific aid to obtain the required flying insect counts without significant increase in costs. It was specifically designed to meet the various food safety regulations through well-established scientific methods. By using scientifically proven sampling techniques, the flying insect counts can be easily achieved — allowing facilities to integrate their fly control program with their mandatory HACCP type sanitation system.
Using the Brandenburg Easy Count Glue Board
There are 112 grid squares on a full Easy Count Glue Board, of which 40 are white counting squares. Counting 14 of the white squares would provide a 1/8 sample rate, which is the recommended minimum for a full glue board. When using 14 of the counting squares the sample count is one eighth of the total squares, so the full board count estimate is just the sample count times eight.
It is important to note that the specific squares that are to be counted should be agreed on prior to implementation. Also, these should be used consistently for all counts.
A count record sheet is also maintained to simplify the counting process. The sheet contains the date, the Insect Light Trap identification (number or location), a box for each square to be counted, and the total count for the trap.
Benefits
- Enables easy and quick sample counting
- No significant increase in costs
- Compliance with the very latest food safety standards
- Helps in record-keeping on time-related data of species, count, and time
- Provides analysis for ongoing continuous improvement