Desf.), which comes directly from t

Desf.), which comes directly from the mill.
Because of the structure of the building, the
possible use of infested cereals and the large
quantity of dust always present, semolina is the
main source of reproduction and diffusion of
pests. Consequently, the same pests [Ephestia
kuehniella Z., Plodia interpunctella (Hb.),
Cryptolestes spp., Gnathocerus cornutus (F.),
Lasioderma serricorne (F.), Oryzaephilus spp.,
Rhyzopertha dominica (F.), Sitophilus spp.,
Stegobium paniceum (L.), Tribolium spp.]
present in warehouses, silos and mills are carried
into the pasta factories where they can multiply.
Sometimes the pasta factory and mill may
constitute an industrial unity where the abovementioned
species can also fly and penetrate into
the processing and packaging departments if the
simplest prevention standards reported in the
HACCP procedures are lacking. Moreover,
during the summer period some of these pests
are able to multiply outside the industrial
facilities, hidden under semolina encrustations
or on rejected products (Figures 1 to 7).
The first critical step in a pasta factory is to
examine the quality of raw material; however, it
is difficult to detect an infestation that is in
progress. In fact, random samples of semolina
on large bags and trucks cannot be considered
reliable sources, especially in the case of eggs
and larvae. The presence of Cryptolestes and
Tribolium adults on the surface of semolina can
be easily verified by inspection only when the
raw materials come from heavily infested mills.
Once the flour is purchased, insects and their
fragments are stored and become part of the first
steps in the processing cycle which is similar in
the pasta factory and modern mills.
It has been observed that kneading machines
and die plates, in particular, represent an
unsurmountable obstacle to living insects and
eggs. The kneading, subsequent pressure and
stretching of the mass and high temperature do
not permit insect survival. However, only insect
fragments remain, testifying to the bad quality
of raw material or the infestations present in the
factory. From the desiccation process onwards,
alimentary pasta can suffer from insect attacks