On 6 June we celebrate World Pest Day 2019, an annual observance to raise awareness among the public, government and media about the important role that the pest control industry plays in protecting health, food, property and the environment from pest threats around the world.
But why do we need pest control professionals?
·Globalisation: with the acceleration of globalisation in recent years, pests are more and more able to cross borders between countries, using modern means of transportation. Exotic species are now entering Europe. This can have consequences for human health, animal health as well as food safety and security. As a result, new solutions are needed to combat them.
·Climate change: concrete signs of climate change and global warming cannot be ignored anymore. This increase in temperature means that pests live longer or do not die due to the milder winters. As a result, pests expand faster and keep spreading. In combination with globalisation, it creates a risk that dangerous mosquitoes will spread across Europe, causing dangerous diseases, e.g. tiger mosquitoes, which can cause dengue fever, chikungunya and meningitis.
·Urbanisation: in Europe, there is currently a change in the layout of our cities as people tend to live closer together. This new paradigm increases the potential for nuisances from pests, such as rats. For them, urbanisation means enough food allowing them to grow faster.
How can policy makers, the medical sector, actors of the food chain and citizens prepare for this? How do we organise pest management in the future? In our view, the solution lies in the professionalisation of pest management sector.