How Do I Get Rid of Fruit Flies in the Office?

Fruit flies are among the most frustrating office pests to eliminate, not because they are resilient, but because the conditions that sustain them are easy to overlook and even easier to recreate. Here is what office managers and building teams need to understand about what drives fruit fly infestations and how to address them at the source.

• The real attractant is not fresh fruit but the fermenting sugars and organic residue it produces, which fruit flies actively seek out as egg-laying sites
• A thin film of beverage residue inside an un-rinsed coffee mug or recycling bin provides more than enough nutrition and moisture for a fruit fly population to sustain itself
• Many office infestations are introduced unknowingly when staff bring fresh produce from home, as eggs and adult flies can travel undetected on the surface of fruit and vegetables
• Off-the-shelf traps intercept adult flies without disrupting the larvae already developing in concealed breeding sites, ensuring the next generation hatches regardless of how many adults are caught
• Breaking the reproductive cycle requires a disciplined combination of daily surface cleaning, same-day trash removal, and keeping all food sealed in airtight containers at all times
• Persistent infestations that resist basic sanitation measures typically indicate a hidden breeding source that only a professional inspection can reliably locate and eliminate

What are Fruit Flies Attracted To?

It’s no surprise that you can find fruit flies swarming around ripe, well, fruit. However, fruit flies aren’t actually attracted to fruit;, they’re attracted to sugar; fruit just happens to be a sugar they can lay eggs in.

How Do I Get Rid of Fruit Flies in the Office?

Following these three steps will help prevent any new fruit fly infestation in your office:

Don’t Leave Food Out at the Office

Before you go home at the end of the day, scour the office for any uncovered food. This includes fruit, bread, candy, meat, cheese, yogurt…pretty much any office snack.

Either dispose of the food outside the building or seal it in an airtight container and put it in the fridge. If you want to keep fruit flies out, you can’t provide them with a buffet!

Wash All of the Fruit You Bring In

There’s a good chance that fruit flies are hitching a ride on fruit that you bring in the office from home. One way to prevent these pesky pests from becoming your new coworker is to wash all the fruit you bring into the office as soon as you get in. Even if you brought your apple that morning, a fruit fly could have found it and snuck aboard at any point during your commute.

Clean Counters And Desks

Fruit flies don’t need much to survive. A crumb here and a spill there will keep fruit flies content. That’s why it’s important to wipe down surfaces at the end of the workday. While you wipe down your desk, make sure you take out your desk trash as well!

Rinse Cups, Bottles, and Containers

Fruit flies love fruit first, sugary beverages second. Fruit flies will get at the last dregs of coffee, soda, energy drinks, or even water. Before recycling any cans, cups, or bottles, rinse them out thoroughly with water from the sink. Make sure you dry them out, too!

Professional Fruit Fly Control in New York

The most helpful tip of all? Get in touch with Assured Environments. If you still have fruit flies in office plants or buzzing around your kitchen, we have 100% confidence that we can completely wipe out your fruit fly infestation. Give our experts a call, and we’ll snuff out those pesky pests and help keep them out.