Green Organic & Safety

What exactly is Green or Organic? Who decides what is Green? ProBest Pest Management belongs to 2 organizations that promote Green, Organic and Safety.

ProBest Pest Management has been a member of QualityPro since 2005, “The Mark of Excellence in Pest Management”. We strive to train, honor integrity and be the best of the best. We also belong to the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) and the Arizona Pest Professional Organization (AZPPO) since 2005.

We are also Gold Members of the Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (PESP) since 2010.

ProBest also participates with the University of Arizona – Pesticide Stewardship Program and their Integrated Pest Management Program (IPM).

The definition Green by the National Pesticide Information Center explains it this way. “U.S. EPA does not allow safety claims, such as “non-toxic,” “green,” or “natural,” in the labeling of any registered product” “On the other hand, “organic pesticides” are clearly defined and must comply with specific standards set by the USDA National Organic Program. They cannot contain man-made chemicals or genetically modified organisms. Some of these products are low in toxicity and considered minimum-risk pesticides. However, one must remember that just because a pesticide is organic, does not mean that it is 100% “safe.”

The Pesticide Specialist described ways to identify low-risk or “green” products such as:

• Looking for pesticide products with National Organic Program certification on the label
• Look for products that meet the criteria for a minimum risk exemption, or products with independent certifications such as the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI).
• Evaluate the signal words and hazard statements on pesticide labels. A signal word of CAUTION indicates the lowest hazard level.
• Some antimicrobial products considered to have a low impact on the environment have the Design or the Environment (DfE) logo on their label. However, this program is only available in the antimicrobial market at this time.

The specialist also discussed ways to minimize the use of pesticides when dealing with fleas by using an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach. Finally, the Pesticide Specialist mentioned additional ways to minimize the risk to her, her family, and the environment. If she chooses to use a pesticide, follow safe use practices and read and follow the label instructions.

So here is the bottom line on the above: We have come a long way in new technology of pesticides, those essential oils do work but very limited in effective time. After a week or two they are gone, some oils can affect pets. So please be careful. We do outside service because of the fact that pesticides are put on wet and then dry to a residual which can become airborne. Most bugs can be controlled from the outside, a few cannot but we have new pesticides to use specifically on them.