# Help! Weevils in the pasta!



## kyhoti

Don't know when we got them, but they're here in our short term storage (the 6 month rotation stuff) . Do i freeze them, hit them with CO2 or what? And what about eating the food? Will cooking then washing the noodles "clean" them for eating or do all 50 pounds need to hit the dumpster?


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## NaeKid

I had to look it up as I don't have a previously known answer ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weevil



> A weevil is any beetle from the Curculionoidea superfamily. They are usually small, less than 6 millimetres (0.24 in), and herbivorous. There are over 60,000 species in several families, mostly in the family Curculionidae (the true weevils). Some other beetles, although not closely related, bear the name "weevil", such as the biscuit weevil (Stegobium paniceum), which belongs to the family Anobiidae.
> 
> Many weevils are damaging to crops. The grain or wheat weevil (Sitophilus granarius) damages stored grain. The boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis) attacks cotton crops. It lays its eggs inside cotton bolls, and the young weevils eat their way out.
> 
> Weevils are often found in dry foods including nuts and seeds, cereal and grain products, such as pancake mix. In the domestic setting, they are most likely to be observed when a bag of flour is opened. Their presence is often indicated by the granules of the infested item sticking together in strings, as if caught in a cobweb.


If you click on the Wikipedia link, it shows a whack-load of pictures of different insects, but, no-where near the 60,000 species ... no details listed there on what would happen if you freeze the pasta and then cook it .. sorry.


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## kyhoti

Yah, I've done some Google-Fu, but I was hoping for the real dope from actual experience, not some FDA internet mumbo-jumbo. Damn bugs made my fettuccine look like swiss cheese! I ate some, and so did someone else in the house, as it was a half box when I got to it. Haven't keeled over yet... I just want to save my stores!


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## Sentry18

I read an article on a prepper blog once where they found rice stores with weevils in them. They cooked it up, ate it and survived. In a pre-event world I would pass. In a post-event world I would be grateful for 1-10 extra calories.


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## tsrwivey

Most insects won't hurt you if you eat them but most of us try to avoid it just the same.  whether or not ya'll eat the pasta I suspect would be up to the lady of the house. If she finds out about it after the fact, the sh!t may hit the fan at your house very soon.  It would at least be grounds for a change in sleeping arrangements at my house.


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## kyhoti

Heck, I already sleep in the bunker b/c I snore like a chainsaw, so getting in trouble is no big deal. I'm just concerned about bug shit in the food. I guess boiling the pasta for ten minutes should kill any pathogens, and doing a hot-water rinse does flush out the dead ones that I didnt get loose when i shook the box. Maybe I need to run a few agar trays and see what grows. Now how the heck am I gonna swab pasta?


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## stayingthegame

you can rinse the pasta off before you cook it. next time try put fresh bay leaves in with any grain item such as flour, pasta etc . the leaves seem to keep out most insects. I throw some in the cabinets where my flour and other grain item are stored as well. only time I have had weevils was when the flour bin didn't get closed tight.


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## partdeux

protein with your carbs


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## kyhoti

Ok, bay leaves. What about DE? Worth a shot? Mind you, this is on open shelving in active rotation, so its around other food in the bunker.


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## The_Blob

DE won't hurt you or your pets (unless you have pet insects  ). Weevils? Boil the noodles, strain the floating bugs out with a sieve, nobody will know.


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## kejmack

Just put your pasta in the freezer for a few days and kill them. No big deal. I put my rice, pasta, flour, etc in the freezer _before_ I put it into the 5 gallon buckets to kill any critters that might be in there.


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## Caribou

For future purchases put your product in the freezer for a few days and or add CO2 to the container. Either should work for you. Freezing will kill them and the CO2 will prevent their hatching. I am sure we have all eaten the eggs. Cooking infested food would be life threatening. Not from the bugs, from the wife.


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## vet75fem

Unfortunately those little critters are usually in flour, rice, etc., right from the milling plants. When storing flours, etc. one is safer by vacume packing the stores. This process kills the eggs or actual critter. If storing in containers one might try using an oxygen absorber and then freezing the container. Depending on the container; 24 hours with an oxygen absorber (1 per 3-5 lbs) and then 24-36 hours in freezer will usually kill bacteria, any bug eggs and other what nots. Hope this helps.


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## dirtgrrl

Freeze all packages before storage, and be sure the storage containers themselves are impervious to re-infestation.

Eating the bugs or excrement won't hurt you. We do it all the time and don't know it. I sure wouldn't throw away a lot of food for a minor infestation, but a major infestation would have considerable ick factor.

In junior high school we "dissected" a chocolate bar after reading about allowable contamination standards in commercially processed food. We found things that definitely weren't chocolate...


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## goshengirl

dirtgrrl said:


> In junior high school we "dissected" a chocolate bar after reading about allowable contamination standards in commercially processed food. We found things that definitely weren't chocolate...


There goes the Halloween fun!


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## RevWC

"Dry Ice

Before storing bulk grain, first fill most of your 5-gallon container and place a section of a brown paper bag on the grain. On top of that, set one fourth of a pound of dry ice. Press the lid gently down on the container so that some of the air can escape. When the dry ice has completely evaporated, remove the brown paper and seal the container. The carbon dioxide released from the dry ice should kill all animal life in the container. 

Freeze It

When storing bulk grain, keep it in your freezer and it will kill all the live insects. Unfortunately, it won't kill the eggs, so freeze your wheat and then leave it out at room temperature for 30 days. Then refreeze your wheat. This should kill any insects that have hatched since the last freeze."


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## jsriley5

Hmm think my buckets of goods that are all sealed up are gonna go out for a "walk" this winter soon as it's deep freeze cold out there find a nice shady spot for a couple days. 

As for the pasta I"d freeze it and either buy to rplace as you continure to eat it provided that is paletable to all involved, or dump it in the garden and start over with a vacume system or the freezer or both. Or some have mentioned oven canning which I have never tried but it seems to work well for those that have done it here. I"d be like you and hate to lose ground on the preps I have worked so hard to get put up.


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## mojo4

If you vacuum seal your wheat or pasta or whatever for 5 to 7 days that also kills any critters. They might not have hatched yet but they still need air to live. I vacuum sealed all my wheat (took forever cause I bought a lot!) And stored it that way. Also, its in 5 to 7 lb bags so if critters managed to live or a bag lost its seal I don't lose a large bucket of food to insect damage. Stored great too!


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## faithmarie




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## LongRider

The best and easiest solutions are those that suggest you add DE (Diatomaceous Earth) to your pasta and grain stores. The very best method is to buy whole grains store with DE added than grind and make your own pasta as needed. DE is is safe and even has some beneficial health properties. It is naturally occurring substance, that has a variety of uses, be sure to use ONLY food grade DE. Some sources are
Wolf Creek Ranch
DirtWoks
Earth Works Health
You can find others sources and more info with a quick web search and be sure to look locally as prices vary wildly. We buy about 50 pounds at a time as it does have a variety of uses


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## faithmarie

You can get it on amazon also.


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## kyhoti

Hopefully this picture will post. This is the enemy! The little white dots on the black paper are larvae that survived freezing in egg form. The little black dot in front of the paper is a dead adult. The few pieces of noodle are bound together by larval waste, with several active beasties inside. The fam refuses to eat pasta thats been infested, so all told I think the total lost was about 100 pounds of pasta. 16,000 calories, kaput. Crud. We've shifted over to rice, much easier to deal with, though rice w/ spaghetti sauce has caused a few raised eyebrows!


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## faithmarie

NOOOOO don't throw it away.... transfer it to something else .. buckets mylar ... shake it off... sprinkle diatomaceous earth on it ... put it away... they will forget... unless it is totally eaten away ... it will be fine ... when you need it ... to barter .. for friends who are hungry... improvise... There is the same thing in rice also unless you take care of it as soon as you get it... with the DE or freezing twice for a long time... Do not throw away...


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## kyhoti

faithmarie, if only it were so simple. After 11 years, my wife knows me pretty darn well. She watched me bag up the pasta, carry it out to the trashcan and put it in. As I was thinking that I could go out after dark and take it back out of the trashcan and store it in my shop, she pointed her finger at me and said "If you sneak back out here and try to hide this bug-food in your shop, the shit will hit the fan sooner than you planned!" sigh.


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## faithmarie

Awwww... Will she let you save it for other people? ... Tell her is pasta w/ protein. At least pasta is cheap... well kind of... Quick ... save it ... LOL

Remember with rice it is much worse ... prepare it well.. they all have the eggs.. even organic.... I believe your safest is lentils and oatmeal ...I have found nothing wants to eat those...


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## camo2460

come on guys all gods creatures got to eat, besides mixed with some Fava beans and a good cianty and you have the perfect meal. Ask Hannible Lector I bet he would eat it. MMMMMM LOL.


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## farmers

I put pasta,flour,rice, any dry food in freezer. Mine is set at -20° this will take care of problem. For added bug proof, when storing put a bay leaf in with dry foods. I keep bay leaves in my cabinets. They work great,


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## GaryS

Because there are only two of us, most of my pasta and flour supplies are purchased in small containers, so I place them in ziplock bags before I put them on the shelf. It's not 100%, but it works pretty well. The little devils will chew through cardboard boxes and the factory bag inside the box to get to the pasta, but the heavier plastic seems to discourage them.


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## LongRider

kyhoti said:


> Hopefully this picture will post. This is the enemy! The little white dots on the black paper are larvae that survived freezing in egg form. The little black dot in front of the paper is a dead adult. The few pieces of noodle are bound together by larval waste, with several active beasties inside. The fam refuses to eat pasta thats been infested, so all told I think the total lost was about 100 pounds of pasta. 16,000 calories, kaput. Crud. We've shifted over to rice, much easier to deal with, though rice w/ spaghetti sauce has caused a few raised eyebrows!


The best solution is my previous post


LongRider said:


> The best and easiest solutions are those that suggest you add DE (Diatomaceous Earth) to your pasta and grain stores. The very best method is to buy whole grains store with DE added than grind and make your own pasta as needed. DE is is safe and even has some beneficial health properties. It is naturally occurring substance, that has a variety of uses, be sure to use ONLY food grade DE. Some sources are
> Wolf Creek Ranch
> DirtWoks
> Earth Works Health
> You can find others sources and more info with a quick web search and be sure to look locally as prices vary wildly. We buy about 50 pounds at a time as it does have a variety of uses


As faithmarie said it is still useable after you expose it to some DE. Explain to your wife that the DE will kill the critters and you are just storing it to barter with if you need to. Tell her you will mark it discretely so you know the buggy from the bug free you will store with DE at the start in the future. Than slowly consume it after the DE has been in it awhile. Shake any loose corpses off and no one will notice.


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## LongRider

GaryS said:


> Because there are only two of us, most of my pasta and flour supplies are purchased in small containers, so I place them in ziplock bags before I put them on the shelf. It's not 100%, but it works pretty well. The little devils will chew through cardboard boxes and the factory bag inside the box to get to the pasta, but the heavier plastic seems to discourage them.


They will get through the plastic as most often they are in the pasta or flour already. Which is why DE is such a great way to deal with the problem. Of course it is best to just store the grain with DE and make your own pasta as needed. Tastes better and takes up less room to store.


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## tsrwivey

kyhoti said:


> faithmarie, if only it were so simple. After 11 years, my wife knows me pretty darn well. She watched me bag up the pasta, carry it out to the trashcan and put it in. As I was thinking that I could go out after dark and take it back out of the trashcan and store it in my shop, she pointed her finger at me and said "If you sneak back out here and try to hide this bug-food in your shop, the shit will hit the fan sooner than you planned!" sigh.


Your wife is my kind of girl! Lol


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## Wellrounded

vet75fem said:


> Unfortunately those little critters are usually in flour, rice, etc., right from the milling plants. When storing flours, etc. one is safer by vacume packing the stores. This process kills the eggs or actual critter. If storing in containers one might try using an oxygen absorber and then freezing the container. Depending on the container; 24 hours with an oxygen absorber (1 per 3-5 lbs) and then 24-36 hours in freezer will usually kill bacteria, any bug eggs and other what nots. Hope this helps.


So right, if you've eaten anything with grain in it you've eaten plenty of critters. We visit our local mill every week or so and they process flour for Aldi. Place is crawling with the little pests.



LongRider said:


> The best and easiest solutions are those that suggest you add DE (Diatomaceous Earth) to your pasta and grain stores. The very best method is to buy whole grains store with DE added than grind and make your own pasta as needed. DE is is safe and even has some beneficial health properties. It is naturally occurring substance, that has a variety of uses, be sure to use ONLY food grade DE. Some sources are
> Wolf Creek Ranch
> DirtWoks
> Earth Works Health
> You can find others sources and more info with a quick web search and be sure to look locally as prices vary wildly. We buy about 50 pounds at a time as it does have a variety of uses


DE is what we use, both for storage in the house and when we fill silos, sprinkle the DE in as we auger it up. The only bug free silos in the district are ours.
We buy bulk bags as well, have heaps in storage and we use it for all sorts of things, including brushing teeth and ad lib feeding to animals.


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## GaryS

LongRider said:


> They will get through the plastic as most often they are in the pasta or flour already. Which is why DE is such a great way to deal with the problem. Of course it is best to just store the grain with DE and make your own pasta as needed. Tastes better and takes up less room to store.


Granted, if they are already in the product you're screwed. However, most pasta, flour, and similar prepared products are not contaminated and the plastic bags control their spread to other nearby containers.

I was only referring to small containers like five pound flour bags and meal sized boxed products. Any infestation of my factory packaged bulk storage products will remain a mystery until it comes time to remove the lids, but I have faith in the suppliers.


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## Country Living

The problem is the little critters seldom stay put. They're in one bag... they're probably in some of your other grain products.

Where are you guys getting food grade DE? I have some for the chickens... is that the same thing? It's brown. The DE I used to use to kill ants was white.


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## bigg777

If you guys can't get past a few bugs in your grains, you are going to be S.O.L. if/when SHTF! 

Wipe off as many of the little pests as poss., boil(SANITIZE) the pasta as you normally would, skimming off any floaters you feel necessary to remove and eat it!!

It not only won't kill you, you won't even notice them, I'm speaking from a position of experience. It is truly a sin to trash such good nutrition.

Get over it or perish!


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## GaryS

bigg777 said:


> If you guys can't get past a few bugs in your grains, you are going to be S.O.L. if/when SHTF!
> 
> Wipe off as many of the little pests as poss., boil(SANITIZE) the pasta as you normally would, skimming off any floaters you feel necessary to remove and eat it!!
> 
> It not only won't kill you, you won't even notice them, I'm speaking from a position of experience. It is truly a sin to trash such good nutrition.
> 
> Get over it or perish!


Good point. I've eaten hundreds of handfuls of just harvested wheat that were loaded with chopped up grasshoppers and other insects caught in the combine. We just picked the heads, legs and guts out before enjoying a good wheat chew. Guess we're just getting soft.

However, I've opened boxes of pasta that had been devoured by unnoticed bugs to the point that only dust and a few perforated pieces remained, in which case boiling would do no good.


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## Wellrounded

bigg777 said:


> If you guys can't get past a few bugs in your grains, you are going to be S.O.L. if/when SHTF!
> 
> Wipe off as many of the little pests as poss., boil(SANITIZE) the pasta as you normally would, skimming off any floaters you feel necessary to remove and eat it!!
> 
> It not only won't kill you, you won't even notice them, I'm speaking from a position of experience. It is truly a sin to trash such good nutrition.
> 
> Get over it or perish!


I know there are bits of weevil in every bit of grain product I eat but I still don't like it when there are a lot of them. If I had to I'd eat them without a problem, but right now with food easily available I'd choose not to. I cleaned out my kitchen flour storage a few weeks ago, the flour bins hadn't been emptied and washed for 6 months or so and I'd noticed a pantry moth in the kitchen. I decided to trash it all and give everything a really good clean. Sure I could have put the flour through a fine screen and used it but it was easier to replace it. 
Trashing on the farm means cooking for dogs, pigs or poultry, nothing goes to waste. I toss a lot of 'food', if I have a big crop I'll only keep the best of it for the house, the rest goes to the livestock or compost heap. I don't see it as a problem to be a little bit fussy while we still can.


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## LongRider

GaryS said:


> but I have faith in the suppliers.


Good luck with that. Bet it will really suck to open a package that you need to live only to discover your food has been devoured by insects you could have easily prevented. I have opened more than one commercially sealed package of pasta from my stores to learn it was devoured by bugs. So now all pasta and grain products get opened treated with DE frozen than stored.



Country Living said:


> Where are you guys getting food grade DE? I have some for the chickens... is that the same thing? It's brown. The DE I used to use to kill ants was white.


I posted my sources a few posts back


LongRider said:


> be sure to use ONLY food grade DE. Some sources are
> Wolf Creek Ranch
> DirtWoks
> Earth Works Health
> You can find others sources and more info with a quick web search and be sure to look locally as prices vary wildly. We buy about 50 pounds at a time as it does have a variety of uses


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