I’ve never had this happen before. I don’t eat rice very often, so I seldom buy it and usually store it for a long time. Sometime last year I picked up a bag of parboiled rice by mistake. I then bought a 5 lb bag of regular rice from Walmart. I stored this rice the same way I always have. I’ve used maybe a 1/3 of that bag. But, tonight I discovered that the container for this rice is infested with bugs about the size and shape of fruitflies. I suspect that the rice was infested by eggs when I bought it. Since Thanksgiving my house has been on the cold side, but it has been unusually hot for the past 2 weeks. I’m thinking that the heat caused the eggs to hatch.
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- Thread starter NotMeantForTheCity
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We've run across the same issue, had to throw out many bags. We had an incident with organic chicken layer pellets and hen scratch. Some seed products need to be stored in a freezer for awhile to kill the bug eggs and anything that has the seed germ, like whole wheat flour and brown rice need to be frozen or they go rancid.
The feed store where I have bought vegetable seeds for the past 25 years did not get a shipment for about half of the seeds they usually stock. They say that there was a crop failure. They only have 1 of the 3 greenbean varieties that I usually plant. I can find these varieties in the pre-packaged seeds at Walmart, but they are outrageously expensive.
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- Dec 3, 2017
- Messages
- 18,303
I cook the buggy rice anyway, and feed it to the chickens
Almost everything you buy, like flour, other grains, legumes, etc is infested with eggs. You can kill them with a freeze for several days. You can stop them from hatching by reducing the oxygen to less than 3% or increasing the CO2 to over 3%. Storing in mylar with O2 absorbers is a way to reduce oxygen. Most plastic is permeable to O2 over time. Mylar is fragile so placing the mylar inside a 5 gallon bucket is a good system. The sealed mylar with O2 absorbers and preferably vacuum sealed works well.
The mylar plastic pail system works well with a chunk of dry ice. Place the mylar in the bucket, place about 3" of product in the bag, place a chunk of dry ice in the bag, fill the bag with the product. Partially seal leaving a gap for air to escape. As the dry ice sublimates will settle to the bottom lifting the oxygenated air out of the bag. several hours later collapse the bag and seal the open gap. If you seal the mylar bag before the dry ice has sublimated completely you have created a balloon and it could pop the bag. CO2 is heavier than air. I prefer the CO2 method as I feel maintaining 3%+ of CO2 is easier than maintaining less than 3% O2. If you let the dry ice touch the mylar it could cause the mylar to crack and leak defeating your purpose.
The mylar plastic pail system works well with a chunk of dry ice. Place the mylar in the bucket, place about 3" of product in the bag, place a chunk of dry ice in the bag, fill the bag with the product. Partially seal leaving a gap for air to escape. As the dry ice sublimates will settle to the bottom lifting the oxygenated air out of the bag. several hours later collapse the bag and seal the open gap. If you seal the mylar bag before the dry ice has sublimated completely you have created a balloon and it could pop the bag. CO2 is heavier than air. I prefer the CO2 method as I feel maintaining 3%+ of CO2 is easier than maintaining less than 3% O2. If you let the dry ice touch the mylar it could cause the mylar to crack and leak defeating your purpose.
I buy the 25# bags of Uncle Bens "instant rice" I keep it for years with no problem, I wonder if whatever they do to turn it into instant has some effect on bugs.
Instant rice is partially cooked. This should kill any insect eggs that are present when the rice is processed, but it wouldn't prevent reinfestation later.
Research diatomaceous earth. It's used to filter your OJ, apple juice, many foods. It's also used in grain elevators for pest control. If you eat bread from a store you eat DE.
I used to sell it, many of us here use it. I still use it in the garden, for fleas and ticks on the dog and as a dewormer. Also around the baseboards for the occasional bug in the house. I used it last summer for flies on the horses. I buy food grade DE in 50lb bags. It comes in smaller bags on the net.
I actually used to repackage DE into 1.5 lb bags, sold to a few local owned herbal medicine shops and health food stores. They resold them. So you might want to check a few shops in your area.
I used the following as a flyer I put in repackaged bags.
And the material safety data sheet...
------------------------------------------------------
Food Grade, Fresh Water Diatomaceous Earth. It’s listed by the Organic Materials Review Institute for use in organic production.
Diatomaceous Earth, also called D.E., is completely organic. It’s a natural pesticide for; households, yards, pets, gardens, flower beds, field crops, livestock and grain storage. It’s also used as a de-wormer in pets and livestock.
D.E. is the fossilized remains of one celled “Diatoms”. They died in ancient lakes and formed rock beds. When mined and crushed these microscopic fossil shards are incredibly sharp.
D.E. kills by physical action, not chemical. When insects crawl through or land on the powder the insect’s exoskeleton is cut/sliced causing dehydration and death. The dry powder absorbs body fluids speeding up the process.
It can kill any insect as well as soft bodied parasites. Here are just a few examples: aphids, beetles, mites, roaches, silverfish, ants, bedbugs, flies, fleas, ticks and lice.
On any surface, including the ground, it has a remarkable repellency factor. As long as it is present, insects tend to stay away. D.E. is Nature's product with no harm to the environment, plants, animals or people.
History: In the early 1900’s it was used in livestock feed as an anti-caking agent and to kill intestinal parasites, used as a dust for fleas, ticks, and fly control.
Foods: If you've eaten anything made with flour you've eaten food grade D.E. Its EPA approved for use in commercial grain storage as a means of natural, poison-free, insect control. It’s completely safe on vegetables and fruits. Again, it’s not a chemical, its rock dust. Just rinse it off.
Household: Apply liberally around baseboards, window seals, under heavy furniture and under cabinets etc. Put around the foundations under and outside the house.
Pets: Rub D.E. into their coats, dust kennels and beds. When using as a de-wormer thoroughly mix D.E. into your pet’s dry or wet food. General guide lines: Cats – 1 tsp/day, Kittens – ½ Tsp/ day. Dogs – 100lbs+ -2 Tbsp/ day, 50 – 100 lbs – 1 tbsp/ day, under 50lbs – 2 tsp/ day, Mini-dogs – 1 tsp/ day
Plants: For all inside plants, home or greenhouse. Use outdoors on fruits, vegetables, lawn, flowers and shrubs. For use up to and including the day of harvest. With a duster cover entire plant, apply to both top and bottom of leaf. For young plants, as little as two pounds per acre may be adequate. For larger plants, five lbs per acre is probably sufficient.
D.E. will need reapplication after a rain. Applies best when there is dew or after a light rain. If the plant leaves are damp when you apply the DE it will stick to plants leaves and be dried by the sun. It’ll adhere better to the plant until the next rain washes it away.
Livestock: All livestock, Horses, Cattle, Swine, Sheep, Goats, Rabbits, Chickens and others will benefit from the use of D.E. Dust their coats. Dust in and around Barns. When mixed in feed it stimulates basic metabolism, converts feed better, reduces odor and moisture in barns and stalls, results in better coat and hoof condition. It keeps fly larvae from developing in manure noticeably reducing the fly populations.
When mixing into feed: Weigh the feed and add 2% of that weight in D.E. Your livestock will also get the benefit of over 14 trace minerals that make up D.E.
Note: Over time DE will slowly be covered by natural dust whether under your refrigerator or in the barn. This reduces its effectiveness so DE will have to be re-applied from time to time. If you start seeing unwanted insects it’s time to re-apply.
Safety: When using diatomaceous earth regularly and/or in large amounts, wear a dust mask and goggles.
Application Methods:
Sprinkle liberally by hand into hard to reach areas, around plants, around and on ant beds. Remember; apply so insects walk through the powder.
For in home use or just a few plants or shrubs use a duster like the tiny” Pest Pistol” -
For larger gardens, lawns, kennels et any good duster from a garden center works.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
I used to sell it, many of us here use it. I still use it in the garden, for fleas and ticks on the dog and as a dewormer. Also around the baseboards for the occasional bug in the house. I used it last summer for flies on the horses. I buy food grade DE in 50lb bags. It comes in smaller bags on the net.
I actually used to repackage DE into 1.5 lb bags, sold to a few local owned herbal medicine shops and health food stores. They resold them. So you might want to check a few shops in your area.
I used the following as a flyer I put in repackaged bags.
And the material safety data sheet...
------------------------------------------------------
Organic Pesticide
Food Grade, Fresh Water Diatomaceous Earth. It’s listed by the Organic Materials Review Institute for use in organic production.
Diatomaceous Earth, also called D.E., is completely organic. It’s a natural pesticide for; households, yards, pets, gardens, flower beds, field crops, livestock and grain storage. It’s also used as a de-wormer in pets and livestock.
D.E. is the fossilized remains of one celled “Diatoms”. They died in ancient lakes and formed rock beds. When mined and crushed these microscopic fossil shards are incredibly sharp.
D.E. kills by physical action, not chemical. When insects crawl through or land on the powder the insect’s exoskeleton is cut/sliced causing dehydration and death. The dry powder absorbs body fluids speeding up the process.
It can kill any insect as well as soft bodied parasites. Here are just a few examples: aphids, beetles, mites, roaches, silverfish, ants, bedbugs, flies, fleas, ticks and lice.
On any surface, including the ground, it has a remarkable repellency factor. As long as it is present, insects tend to stay away. D.E. is Nature's product with no harm to the environment, plants, animals or people.
History: In the early 1900’s it was used in livestock feed as an anti-caking agent and to kill intestinal parasites, used as a dust for fleas, ticks, and fly control.
Foods: If you've eaten anything made with flour you've eaten food grade D.E. Its EPA approved for use in commercial grain storage as a means of natural, poison-free, insect control. It’s completely safe on vegetables and fruits. Again, it’s not a chemical, its rock dust. Just rinse it off.
Household: Apply liberally around baseboards, window seals, under heavy furniture and under cabinets etc. Put around the foundations under and outside the house.
Pets: Rub D.E. into their coats, dust kennels and beds. When using as a de-wormer thoroughly mix D.E. into your pet’s dry or wet food. General guide lines: Cats – 1 tsp/day, Kittens – ½ Tsp/ day. Dogs – 100lbs+ -2 Tbsp/ day, 50 – 100 lbs – 1 tbsp/ day, under 50lbs – 2 tsp/ day, Mini-dogs – 1 tsp/ day
Plants: For all inside plants, home or greenhouse. Use outdoors on fruits, vegetables, lawn, flowers and shrubs. For use up to and including the day of harvest. With a duster cover entire plant, apply to both top and bottom of leaf. For young plants, as little as two pounds per acre may be adequate. For larger plants, five lbs per acre is probably sufficient.
D.E. will need reapplication after a rain. Applies best when there is dew or after a light rain. If the plant leaves are damp when you apply the DE it will stick to plants leaves and be dried by the sun. It’ll adhere better to the plant until the next rain washes it away.
Livestock: All livestock, Horses, Cattle, Swine, Sheep, Goats, Rabbits, Chickens and others will benefit from the use of D.E. Dust their coats. Dust in and around Barns. When mixed in feed it stimulates basic metabolism, converts feed better, reduces odor and moisture in barns and stalls, results in better coat and hoof condition. It keeps fly larvae from developing in manure noticeably reducing the fly populations.
When mixing into feed: Weigh the feed and add 2% of that weight in D.E. Your livestock will also get the benefit of over 14 trace minerals that make up D.E.
Note: Over time DE will slowly be covered by natural dust whether under your refrigerator or in the barn. This reduces its effectiveness so DE will have to be re-applied from time to time. If you start seeing unwanted insects it’s time to re-apply.
Safety: When using diatomaceous earth regularly and/or in large amounts, wear a dust mask and goggles.
Application Methods:
Sprinkle liberally by hand into hard to reach areas, around plants, around and on ant beds. Remember; apply so insects walk through the powder.
For in home use or just a few plants or shrubs use a duster like the tiny” Pest Pistol” -
For larger gardens, lawns, kennels et any good duster from a garden center works.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
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I've used DE as a garden pesticide, and I tried to use the food-grade version as a dewormer for my late cat, but no matter how I mixed it with her food she refused to eat it.
We take it as a given that rice will be infested.
The wife puts new rice into the freezer for a couple of days before storing.
It can sometimes be a problem finding freezer space when I bring home a 50 pound bag from the Vietnamese grocery.
The wife puts new rice into the freezer for a couple of days before storing.
It can sometimes be a problem finding freezer space when I bring home a 50 pound bag from the Vietnamese grocery.
- Joined
- Dec 4, 2017
- Messages
- 3,190
If I find buggy rice, I just rinse, let the bugs float up and skim off. We still use with no problems for years now.
