Enjoy significant savings when you purchase select BASF Pest Control solutions in pallet or half-pallet quantities from authorized distributors from Jan. 1, 2026, to Dec. 15, 2026. Qualifying products include 500-gram bottles of Alpine WSG, 120-ounce bottles of Fendona CS and 8-pound pails of Selontra Rodent Bait (full pallet only). Certain restrictions may apply.
About BASF
BASF Corp., headquartered in Florham Park, N.J., is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has approximately 16,000 employees in North America and had sales of $25.7 billion in 2022.
BASF creates chemistry for a sustainable future by combining economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. More than 110,000 employees in the BASF Group contribute to the success of its customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. BASF’s portfolio is organized into six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions.
As Valentine’s Day chocolates, sweets, and candy gifts pile up in kitchens and pantries across the US, the pest control experts at Excel Pest Services are warning homeowners that leftover treats could be doing more harm than good.
Improperly stored chocolate and candy can quickly attract rodents and insects, increasing the risk of infestations in the weeks after Valentine’s Day, when many people forget about half-eaten boxes and novelty sweets.
“Chocolate and sugary candy are some of the most attractive food sources you can leave out,” says Nick Ferrante Jr., ACE at Excel Pest Services, in a news release. “Once pests find an easy food supply in a pantry or cupboard, they’ll keep coming back, and they won’t stop at the candy.”
With colder weather still pushing pests indoors and food sources outside becoming scarce, Ferrante says Valentine’s leftovers often become an unexpected trigger for pest problems.
Eliminate these mistakes to avoid pests
1. Leaving opened chocolate in cardboard packaging
Cardboard is among the least protective materials when combating pests like rodents, which can chew through it within minutes, and insects that utilize the structure of the box to stay hidden while helping themselves to a snack.
“With Valentine’s chocolate, packaging is usually opened and handled multiple times,” Ferrante added in a release. “That makes minor access points harder to spot, especially underneath or along seams. Once scent residue is left behind, pests will continue returning to the same location.”
2. Storing sweets in cupboards that aren’t disturbed daily
Thinking of using a high shelf or even a darkened kitchen cabinet? These are places where it is easy to forget about your Valentine’s candy and provide lengthened periods of darkness, warmth and stability, making it the perfect spot for pests to hide out.
“Rodents will memorise food locations,” Ferrante said. “If a food source remains available over multiple nights, they adjust their movement patterns to revisit it regularly. At that point, activity often escalates from foraging to nesting nearby to reduce travel distance.”
3. Assuming sealed gift packaging is pest-proof
While the elaborate packaging of candies may be pretty, it isn’t protective. Foil trays, thin plastic wraps, and decorative tins slow pests down but don’t prevent access. Rodents can smell chocolate through packaging and will gnaw directly through weaker points, while ants and cockroaches exploit microscopic gaps or condensation buildup.
“We frequently trace infestations back to gift packaging that homeowners believed was sealed,” Ferrante said. “In reality, it only delayed access, not prevented it.
4. Ignoring melted or compromised chocolate
It is so easy to forget about or get tired of chocolates. However, when left for too long, chocolates soften and reharden, providing a stronger odor compound which can seep into shelf liners and packaging. Essentially leaving a marker for pests to navigate back to.
“From a detection standpoint, compromised chocolate is significantly more attractive,” Ferrante noted. “Even after the chocolate itself is removed, residue can continue drawing pests back to the same location.”
5. Leaving candy-related waste inside overnight
Empty wrappers, trays, and boxes retain food scent long after the chocolate is gone. When these are left in indoor trash bins, especially overnight, they act as scent trails that guide pests deeper into kitchens and pantries.
“Once pests associate a specific area with sugar or fat sources, they don’t stop at the trash,” Ferrante warns. “They begin exploring surrounding cupboards, walls, and voids, looking for additional food or nesting opportunities.”
What can customers do to stay safe?
To reduce risk, Excel Pest Services advises homeowners to:
Transfer chocolate out of original packaging into airtight glass or hard plastic containers
Inspect pantry shelving for crumbs, residue, or packaging damage
Remove uneaten Valentine’s sweets promptly, rather than storing them indefinitely
Seal indoor trash tightly and dispose of it regularly, especially after gift unwrapping
Monitor for early warning signs, including gnaw marks, grease trails, ants, or damaged packaging
“Chocolate is a high-value food source for both rodents and insects,” Ferrante says. “When it’s left accessible, it increases the likelihood of ongoing activity rather than one-off sightings.”
Excel Pest Services experts recommend a thorough post-Valentine’s pantry check as part of seasonal pest prevention, particularly while colder weather continues to push pests indoors.
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About Atticus
Based in Cary, N.C., Atticus LLC is a demand-driven manufacturer of battle-tested chemistries, established in 2014 and built from the ground up with a clear purpose to Enhance Daily Life. Through its agriculture and ecocore portfolios, the Atticus team is committed to helping professionals maximize their input requirements with dependable solutions. As an independent company, it executes each step of every project with discipline, to turn strategy into trusted results.
The Nebraska State Pest Control Association (NSPCA) recently announced registration for the 2026 Urban Pest Management Conference has opened. The event will span across two days, where attendees spend time networking with vendors to learn about the best products and services in the industry and earn continuing education credits (CEUs) by attending sessions with speakers.
About the event
The event will take place in Lincoln, Neb., Feb. 18-20 at the Lincoln Marriott Cornhusker Hotel.
Educational speakers will take the stage across each day speaking on topics such as stored grain insects, driving and safety awareness, professionalism, cockroaches, sanitation and much more.
This year will be the first ever where CEUs will be scanned. Attendees are required to have their license in order to receive credit.
How to register
The NSPCA asks that resistration is completed in one of the ways below:
Mail form to NSPCA, 10460 North Street, Fairfax, Va. 22030
About the NSPCA
The Nebraska State Pest Control Association functions, in part, to provide educational opportunities to its members and other interested parties. The association holds a variety of seminars and lectures on topics as diverse as the biology and control of specific pest species to proper pest inspection and identification procedures to environmental awareness and safety issues and practical business topics as well.
Orlando, Fla.-based Massey Services, recently announced the promotion of Greg Kopplow to regional manager of The Villages region in Central Florida.
Gregg Koplow
IMAGE: MASSEY SERVICES
Since joining Massey in 2009, Kopplow has held multiple leadership roles across the organization, including managing operations for several Florida and Texas regions and, most recently, overseeing the company’s new construction division. Throughout his career with Massey Services, Kopplow has played a pivotal role in driving growth and operational success in every region he has served.
“Greg has consistently demonstrated an exceptional ability to build strong, high-performing teams across diverse markets,” said Tony Massey, president and CEO of Massey Services, in a news release. “His leadership, strategic mindset and strong commitment to customers — anchored in a culture of total customer satisfaction — make him the ideal choice to oversee operations in the rapidly expanding Villages region.”
Originally from Miami, Fla, Kopplow earned a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Florida State University and later completed his master of business administration at Florida International University.
About Massey Services
Based in Orlando, Fla., Massey Services is one of the nation’s largest and most respected service companies in the pest management industry. Celebrating 41 years of consecutive profitable growth, Massey Services and its subsidiary organizations employ more than 2,900 team members who provide residential and commercial pest prevention, termite protection, landscape and irrigation services for nearly 1 million customers from 194 Service Centers throughout Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Virginia and Tennessee.
“After normalizing for one more workday in December, the Pest Index increased about 8 percent year-over-year,” says William Blair Equity Researcher Tim Mulrooney. “This is slightly below the 10 percent rate of growth that the index averaged throughout 2025.”
Dan Gordon, managing member of PCO Bookkeepers & M&A Specialists, adds, “The December Pest Index results emphasize the underlying strength and resilience of the pest control industry. Even after adjusting for an extra workday, the industry grew at a pace near its long-term average, signaling healthy demand.”
The month’s results by segment include:
The Residential Pest Index increased 15 percent year-over-year.
The Commercial Pest Index increased 9 percent year-over-year.
The Termite Index increased 6 percent year-over-year.
The Bed Bug Index increased 5 percent year-over-year.
The Mosquito Index increased 26 percent year-over-year.
About the William Blair/PCO Bookkeepers & M&A Specialists Pest Index
The William Blair/PCO Bookkeepers & M&A Specialists Pest Index tracks the monthly performance of 146 privately held pest control companies across 38 states with combined annual 2025 revenue of $583 million. The purpose of the report is to track the monthly performance of several U.S. pest markets. It does not include residential door-to-door companies. Learn more at PCOBookkeepers.com.
Based in Atlanta, Ga., Arrow Exterminators operates a modern fleet of more than 3,300 vehicles across 192 service centers, with over 3,500 team members. The company generates more than $450 million in annual revenue, and has been named a Top USA Workplace for four consecutive years. Arrow holds QualityPro accreditation from the National Pest Management Association and provides environmentally responsible services to protect homes and businesses in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
Arrow is led by President and COO Tim Pollard, CEO Emily Thomas Kendrick, and Chairman Joe Thomas, a Pest Management Professional Hall of Fame inductee (Class of 2009). The company was founded in 1964 by industry veteran Starkey Thomas and his wife, Jean. Since acquiring its first company in 1988, Arrow has grown by partnering with pest control businesses that share its values and dedication to quality. Today, it stands as the largest family-owned pest and termite control company in the United States.
Arrow offers a full range of services, including pest control, termite protection, mosquito prevention, wildlife control and exclusion, handyman work, insulation services and new construction treatments. These services are available for both residential and commercial customers.
As a third-generation family business, Arrow respects the time and effort it takes to build a successful pest management company. The team understands the importance of creating strong foundations for lasting partnerships and works closely with acquisition partners to ensure a smooth transition for both customers and employees.
