I found maggots in my pantry!!!?

Question

I was just finishing up feeding my son dinner when I opened up the pantry to get some crackers out for him. I rearranged a few things on my sons food shelf and picked up a microwavable pasta bowl and it had maggots all over it!!!! I FREAKED out and threw it away. How in he world did maggots get in my pantry? Nothing was opened in there? What should I do now? Should I bleach my pantry or anything? I'm afraid everything on the shelf is dirty now!!! HELP!

Answer 1

maybe things like wheat grow parasites  on aftera while it happend with greybugs and my wheatabix! they can attract other things, also if something has not been cleaned properly, maybe flys exposed to it then you putting it away is warm, perfect enviroment for parasetic/bacterial growth.

just give it a one over and you should be fine and dandy!

x

Answer 2

I would take everything down.. get some bleach and mix i with some water... unless you have the bleach cleaner spray stuff...and spray it down and clean it... all food going back up there must be sealed. I would discard anyfood you think is open in any way. wipe down the outside of all the packages you put up there.

Answer 3

I would clean it all out, but can foods dont need to be thrown away just clean them off

Answer 4

Maggots mean that there was some food available,and flies laid eggs in it.  Perhaps the microwaveable pasta bowl had a leak.

Everything off the shelf,  throw away any food that is not sealed tightly.  You can wash bottles and cans, but the labels may come off or become illegible. Various cleaners would work, bleach works fine, it kills germs.

Answer 5

empty your pantry out and inspect everything. you can get boiling water mixed with vinegar and pour it on that area and it will kill them all. i would throw away everything that was on that shelf as well, including other shelves you found maggots on.

Answer 6

Yes, bleach the pantry.

Answer 7

It sounds like you have pantry moths, which can strongly resemble maggots in certain stages. They come home from the grocery store in infested cardboard boxes. They are not uncommon and you can get rid of them. Having them doesn't mean you are a dirty person.

First, you need to empty your pantry. Inspect all the items you take out. Throw away anything old or that's been opened for a while and you haven't used. Pantry moths particularly love grain products, so pay special attention to those.

Second, clean out your pantry. I used hot water with a little dish soap, you can add a drop of bleach if you want. Make sure you wipe the shelves and the sides of the pantry really well.

Third, put a couple bowls of vinegar on different shelves overnight and shut the door. They do not like vinegar and this should finish driving them out. When you open your pantry in the morning, look for any signs of them to clean up.

Put all your grain goods (flour, pasta, rice, etc.), in resealable containers with tight fitting lids. This should avoid the problem in the future. It is possible to get rid of them. Good luck!

Answer 8

I would call an exteriminator if I was you

Thats really gross and unsanitary

not that it's your fault cause it's not

but yea I would call someone for help and quick

Answer 9

first u take all the food out and clean the pantry with bleach (mixed with water 50/50) and then throw away the food u think was infested (or all of it the food from that shelf) and then the maggots should be gone :)

Answer 10

A female fly must have gone in there and laid her maggots. Oops

Answer 11

it could have been a fly that was in there. just throw everything away and get new things. but first clean that spot.

Answer 12

There not maggots it is actually larva....There pantry pest like a Indian Meal Moth, probablly...Check in all your foods for bugs, it will have silk webbing all in your food....You will know it when you find it, possiblly the crackers you described...Once you have thrown out the infested product, just vaccum up the Larva and the moths...yes you more than likely have tiny Moths in your house, check along the top of your pantry and your house in general...They will forge long distances....But do not worry, just getting rid of the infested product will elminate your pests over time without no efforts...

Answer 13

bleach will kill maggots and disinfect everything.  I would scrub it out .    Not straight bleach.....dont wanna burn your lungs out,  but mix it with water  50/50

Maggots come from fly larva.   If you had flies in there.......that'll do it.   Did that pasta bowl have meat in it?   Maybe it was opened a bit that you couldnt see,  but a fly got in there.       I would check everything else on your shelf  , make sure everything is sealed tight.   wipe off with bleach what you can.    You should be fine.

Answer 14

Yes you should

Answer 15

A female fly had to have laid her eggs in there. You should throw everything away and bleach the pantry for sanitary reason. Always make sure that you never leave anything open in your pantry nor let flies in your house.

Answer 16

I agree bleach the pantry, and I'd throw away everything not in a can or glass jar.

Most likely there had to be something wet and rotten in there somewhere.

They are usually fly larva, and gross me out too. I had left a dish in the sink once before going away on vacation and had come back to maggots. Ick!!!

Answer 17

call orkin asap. if there are eggs. you are in trouble

Answer 18

i friggin hate maggots. i opeend up a chocolate bar once and it had maggots in it. yeah the only way is if a fly had gotten in there or sum type of food rot in ur pantry. i dunno maggots can show up anywhere so i have no clue actually. but yeah bleach it and disinfect everything. im srry i HATE maggots. go through ur food thoroughly. and throw out old food and what not.

Answer 19

Check any food that was not sealed and toss anything that looks to have been infested. Wash down any cans or bottles with a wet soapy rag. Vacuum all the little buggers out first though and then empty the bag/canister to prevent reinfestation. He may have put a half eaten something on the shelf and that is what started the cycle. Just be glad you caught it.

Answer 20

Maggots are just insect larvae and are usually found wherever there is low light, humidity, and a food source.  The maggots aren't dirty until they've been exposed to bacteria so it really depends on the food source that the insect found.  Bleach is an excellent way to kill germs.  Be sure you never mix traditional chlorine bleach with ammonia.  It creates a very unhealthy gas that can result in passing out or even suffocation.

Answer 21

You should use a cleaner that has bleach in it. Then when you are finished with that throw out all the food that was in there...It was all contaminated with the bugs...make sure every 3-4 weeks you clean the pantry with a vinegar based cleaner good for the enviornment, good for the pantry and good for the whole house..