A Report on the Penetration of Packaging Materials by Insects

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Abstract
32 spp. of stored product insect pests were maintained in laboratory cultures to provide living specimens for testing the resistance of packaging materials to insect penetration. Several methods of determining the ability of insects to penetrate package materials were used. Disks of packaging materials or materials made into small packages, or commercially prepd. packages were tested. Pint Mason jars were used for the testing of disks, gallon jars for small packages, and large garbage cans where large packages were involved. The penetration tests were conducted in a room where the temp. averaged approx. 78[degree] F and the relative humidity varied from 55 to 60%. The insects with propensity for boring are apparently the most effective penetrators of packaging materials. Of these the Cadelle, Tenebroides mauritanicus, is the most aggressive. Several insects are able to penetrate light-weight packaging materials, but aparently experience difficulty where thick materials are encountered. No substitute packaging material for metal or glass so far tested has been found to be strictly insect proof. The most promising type to date is a heavy cardboard carton, double-dipped in a thermoplastic wax. Folds, creases, seams, seals, and roughened areas appear to be favorable spots for insects to penetrate packages. Repellents offer a possible solution to the problem of keeping insects out of packages. About 40 compounds have been tested in wax-impregnated packages, and several of these have prolonged the time or even prevented the Cadelle from penetrating the wax-impregnated packages.

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