Can Roaches Eat Through Plastic?

A cockroach is omnivorous, and they eat almost anything except metals that is because they can’t chew it. This creature is hard to kill and lives among us. They love to contaminate foods that we eat. To stop that from happening, we take preventive measures, and one of them is plastic.

But can roaches eat through plastic? Cockroaches can eat through light plastic to consume food. They have enough bite force to cut light plastic. They have a strong digestive system that can digest various kinds of things. The bacteria present in their gizzard helps them in digesting. However, a cockroach cannot eat through hard plastic.

Continue reading to know what kind of plastic they can eat through and how you can stop that from happening.

What Does Cockroach Eat?

Cockroach eats everything. They can eat paper, cardboard, rotten foods, overripe fruits, dead animals, dead insects, feces. 

That’s why they spread so many diseases. Cockroaches will eat your leftovers and spread diseases. So it’s essential to keep your dishes clean after you eat it.

Plastic is not the primary food for a cockroach. If food remnants are attached to plastic, then a cockroach may eat plastic. 

Can Plastic Kill A Cockroach?

Plastic is not digestible, but if a cockroach consumes a small amount of plastic, then it will not die. However, if the cockroach eats a lot amount of plastic, then the cockroach can die. 

The plastic will not get digested and can kill the cockroach. Plastic is not a biodegradable product.

It creates a lot of pollution, and you can see it everywhere. Plastic has reached Mariana trench and even to space. 

Because of this mass spreading cockroaches can come across plastics, and they can consume it not intentionally but accidentally.

Plastic Is A Man-Made Product

Plastic is a synthetic product created by human and is very harmful to the environment. 

It doesn’t decompose and so these plastic end up going into animals stomach. No animal can digest a vast amount of plastic, so they die. 

Animals cannot understand whether plastic is edible or not. They don’t have the senses to identify it if any food is attached to a plastic; they consume it without knowing and then dies.

It is same with cockroaches also.

Can Cockroach Eat Through Plastic?

If there is food kept inside light plastic, then the cockroach can cut through the plastic to get to the food. 

This can be problematic. So, keep your foods inside thick plastic. The cockroach won’t be able to cut through that. Your food will be safe if you keep it inside thick plastic products. It can be a plastic container or a plastic bag.

Make sure there is no hole in that plastic product; otherwise, cockroach or a nymph can get inside and damage your food.

Airtight plastic bags are also effective. It will keep your food fresh and will give you a proper indication if the air within the airtight bag is leaking. The bag will flatten if the air is not stored inside.

What Kind Of Plastic Can A Cockroach Eat Through And Which One They Can’t?

A cockroach can cut through thin plastic, but they cannot cut through hard plastic. A hard plastic container is a safe place to store food. 

A cockroach doesn’t eat plastics they only cut through to reach the food; fortunately cutting through hard plastic is not possible. 

Cockroaches don’t have the bite force to cut through hard plastic.

Sometimes after keeping food inside a container, people see cockroaches inside that. Let me explain why. 

A cockroach cannot cut through hard plastic that is the truth. Still, if you accidentally keep the container open for a long time, then a nymph or cockroach can enter the plastic container.

You need to make sure you are not keeping the plastic container open, especially if you have a high cockroach infestation.

Cockroaches can also enter plastic container directly from the food. If you are keeping grains in a plastic container, then make sure to check the grains properly before putting it inside the container. 

A nymph can get inside grains and hide. You can overlook them as they are tiny. They can also die inside the grains, which is disgusting, and you should not consume it.

That’s why check the grains or any other edible products before keeping that inside a container.

Can Cockroaches Eat Through Ziplock Bags?

Ziplock bags are effective in keeping edible products safe. But make sure there is no opening. The problem with the ziplock bag is that the zip doesn’t work so well. 

It should zip to the end, but because of some problem it doesn’t zip to the end and cockroach can enter from there. 

It can be problematic as a cockroach can enter from a tiny gap. If a zip lock bag is not zipping correctly, make sure to change it and put the food in a ziplock bag that is correctly working. 

Cockroach won’t be able to bite through the ziplock bag. Also, make sure that the zip lock bag is quite thick, not complete thin. A cockroach can cut through the thin plastic. 

Do not put too much product in one zip lock bag instead buy multiple ziplock bags and put only adequate amount per bag.

How To Avoid The Situation

To avoid this situation, you can do a few things. Here goes the list:

1. Keep The Plastic Container Inside A Kitchen Closet

For this to be effective, make sure there is no gap in the door of your kitchen cupboard. Make sure it is not broken. After checking these just put the food inside the closet, and you are good to go.

Make sure to keep the doors closed if not using them. This way, you’ll prevent cockroaches from entering the closet.

2. Keep Your Food Inside A Ziplock Bag And Put It Inside Plastic Container

This strategy works well. Just keep the food inside the ziplock bag and put that in a plastic container. Make sure to close the lid of the plastic container properly. 

This adds double protection and cockroaches will not be able to enter it. Along with that, you’ll see whether any cockroach has entered the plastic container or not. If you see any cockroach simply throw them away.

3. Use Boric Powder

The boric powder works well in keeping cockroaches away. 

Just put the food in a plastic container and then make a circle using boric powder and put the plastic container that contains the food inside the circle. 

Cockroaches can’t tolerate boric powder and will not be able to cross the circle.

4. Reduce The Overall Infestation

Reducing the overall infestation will have the best effects. You don’t have to worry about cockroaches all the time. 

You can use cockroach killer and spray it on the corners of your house where cockroaches can hide, and that will get rid of most of the cockroaches from your home, and your food will be safe.

5. Call A Pest Control Company

If the infestation is high and you don’t want to get rid of the cockroaches yourself then call a pest control company. 

They will get rid of cockroaches. An exterminator will use specialised equipment to get rid of cockroaches. 

Cockroaches can hide anywhere. An exterminator uses special equipment to spray the chemicals within the cracks and crevices of your house. 

If any cockroach is hiding there, then they will die. These chemicals are really useful, and it gets rid of a massive amount of cockroaches at once. 

Pest control company will charge money depending upon the difficulty of the task and the amount of chemical used. The price varies from company to company. 

So make your decision whether you want to do it yourself or call a pest control company.

Conclusion

A cockroach can cut through light plastic, but if you keep food in hard plastic, then a cockroach won’t be able to cut through that. 

A cockroach doesn’t consume plastic purposefully. It will only eat plastic if food is attached to the plastic. 

A cockroach can enter from a tiny gap so make sure your food is in a properly enclosed plastic bag. 

Nymph is very dangerous, and they can easily enter from tiny holes. If your plastic bag has holes or gaps, then change it because nymph can easily enter from that.