Small bugs in flour

[amonty1144]

The other week I decided to do some baking, when i opened the flour, it was crawling with very small bugs, like midges. Does anyone know what they were and where they come from?
I also opened a new packet of breadmix tonight and they are in that as well.
Do I need to do something to my cupboard?
all the items were purchased from different supermarkets.

[pastafreak]

This is quite common-apparently the eggs of the little nasties are often in most flour products when we buy them.They are harmless to us but certainly not very appetising!!.The best thing to do is put flour based products in the freezer for a day before storing them as you normally would-this will kill off the eggs.

[tiggertan]

Weevils! I just bake them, horrible little blighters!

[claguey]

Sounds like weevils, you need to clear out your cupboards particularly any items in cardboard packets as once they're in one pack they will get into anything. Thorough clean & disinfect you should see the back of the little blighters. You can restock then. The storage in some supermarkets leaves a lot to be desired, so always check packets and take them back to shop if you open it and find unwanted guests.

[B00]

Weevles, not be confused with these guys

[Goodsoulette]

silverfish???

[SHEHE]

I always keep the flour in airtight containers so when I went to use it , the weevils were there so it's the shops not storing the flour properly . Don't fancy them in the pastry !! yukky!!!

[amonty1144]

they were like small flys rather than a maggot type creature. Didn't use any of the flour anyway and I detest waste

[fine,thanks]

keep your flour in the fridge.

[Goodsoulette]

http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/preservation/t raining/pests/images/silverfish3.jpg

if they could have looked like this, then there is a bit on how to get rid of them here

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

[GGM]

Weevils ~~ they flourish in most grain based products.

You should always sift your flour before adding any other ingredients ~~ also allows the air into it, making bread and cakes lighter.

Best you keep your flour in the refrigerator but even so, make it a general practice of putting the flour through a sieve before using.

Weevils are full of calcium, so if you miss one, don't worry too much!!!!!!!!!

[unruliejulie]

scroll down to nearly the bottom of the page and you'll see your answer. Annoying little *******! psocids!

http://www.fabflour.co.uk/Freestyle.asp?PageID =237

[amonty1144]

that is definitely them , i've thrown out the old stuff and put the new stuff in the fridge, i'll hoover the cupboard tomorrow

[unruliejulie]

amonty1144, i never keep my flour in the cupboard now cause of these things! I got fed up of throwing full bags of flour away. Ive not had a problem since.