News

NPMA Introduces New
Greenpro Certification

FAIRFAX, Va. — The National Pest Management Association (NPMA) announced that GreenPro, its enhanced green certification program, has now been endorsed by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), one of the world’s largest environmental advocacy groups. The new GreenPro certification program is designed for those companies that want to tap into the growing green marketplace for pest control services. Significantly improved GreenPro standards will provide consumers looking for a green service with a third party-endorsed green approach to eliminating pest problems.

As part of this roll-out the existing QualityPro Green program will be rebranded as GreenPro — a new name and look that are the result of in-depth consumer research conducted by QualityPro. “After collecting valuable qualitative and quantitative research, we are confident that the new name, logo and performance standards more accurately depict the principles of the program and the commitment to the overall green movement,” said Bob Rosenberg, senior vice president of NPMA.

“When we developed GreenPro, we did so to provide a better tool for our members who want to take advantage of the growing consumer interest in green pest control services,” says Rob Lederer, executive vice president of NPMA. “After many months of dialogue, it is a great milestone to have a group as formidable as NRDC to provide us with their support and endorsement of our green program.”

“It continues to amaze me how quickly the association can adapt to consumer demands,” said Kevin Kordek, QualityPro board of directors chair. “The GreenPro program is a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit of pest management companies from coast to coast, and I look forward to watching the evolution as we continue to build on our reputation for professionalism.”

GreenPro is a voluntary designation for companies that meet the enhanced GreenPro certification performance standards. For more information on QualityPro, visit www.npmaqualitypro.org.  For more information on GreenPro, visit www.npmagreenpro.com or e-mail GreenPro@pestworld.org.

Stay tuned to next month’s issue of PCT magazine for more information about NPMA’s GreenPro program.

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University of Kentucky Announces 39th Annual Program
Lexington, KY. — The 39th Annual University of Kentucky Pest Control Short Course will be held Sept. 28-30, in Lexington, KY. The conference includes a money-back satisfaction guarantee and features one of the strongest programs in the country. Featured topics include pest situations, prudence with pesticides, defensive driving habits, and new insights for managing bed bugs, termites, roaches, flies, bats and brown recluse spiders.

Featured speakers include Jeff Tucker, Fred Strickland, Scott McNeely, Paul Hardy, Stoy Hedges, Steve Kells, Bob Dold Jr., Steve Russell, Jamel Sandidge, Fred Whitford and T.J. Neary.

For more information, contact Dr. Michael F. Potter, Department of Entomology, S-225 Agric. Sci. Bldg. N, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546-0091; phone 859/257-5955; fax 859/323-1120; or e-mail dthorpe@uky.edu.

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Lonnie F. Holder, Industry Pioneer, Passes Away at 93

TRINITY, TEXAS — Lonnie F. Holder, whose involvement in pest control began during World War II and continued into the 1980s as founder and owner of Holder’s Pest Control, died May 10, at age 93.

Holder was a graduate of Tarleton College and David Baker College. He was past president of the Houston Pest Control Association, and a lifetime member of the Texas Pest Control Association.

During World War II, Holder served as a corpsman in the U.S. Navy where he was among the first to mix DDT, which was aerially sprayed on the island of Saipan. Holder was interviewed about that experience by David Fincannon for a video segment that appears on “The Greatest Generation and the Modern Pesticide Revolution.” In the video, Holder said U.S. bombing had snapped the sugarcane, allowing sugar to seep into the ground. “The flies were so thick you couldn’t open your mouth,” Holder said. However two hours after DDT had been sprayed, not a fly was in sight, Holder recalled.

Following the war, Holder went to work for the U.S. Public Health Service in Galveston, Texas, where he performed typhus surveys and rodent control services. He began doing “freelance” rodent work on weekends and in evenings. After removing rodents from a Galveston grocery store, officials from the grocery store chain were so impressed they hired Holder to service all of the company’s 30 stores in southeastern Texas. So in 1947, Holder and his family moved to Houston and he opened Holder’s Pest Control.

Holder’s son Leo worked for his father and later opened End-O-Pest Termite & Pest Control. His grandson Ronnie is currently involved in the industry as product manager for general insect control and commercial markets, BASF.

Ronnie recalls his grandfather’s commitment to improving the industry’s image. “Even back in the 1960s his technicians always wore uniforms and drove trucks that were marked and lettered,” said Ronnie. “He tried his best to promote a positive image for our industry.”

Darrell Hutto, president of Horizon Professional and Consulting Services, Houston, Texas, worked for Holder’s from 1965 to 1977 and considered Holder a mentor and second father. “He’s had a big influence on me because of the guidance, leadership and principles he instilled in me,” said Hutto. “Not a day goes by when I don’t use or reflect on what he taught me.”

In the 1970s Holder’s Pest Control became a part of Copesan Services, and in 1983 Lonnie Holder sold the company to Copesan. In his retirement, Holder stayed active, serving as a junior high and senior high school substitute teacher as recently as last year. “He loved teaching young people,” Ronnie recalled. “He would always try to teach them something about life.”

Holder is survived by his wife, Joyce, son, Leo Holder, son-in-law Art Avery, and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. — Brad Harbison
Target Specialty Products Named Exclusive Distributor for Drexel’s Master Fume

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NPMA Announces 2009-10 Board of Directors

Fairfax, Va. — The National Pest Management Association in June announced its 2009-10 board of directors. As NPMA’s leadership team, the board of directors is the strength of the association and it positions the association for growth and its future, NPMA said.

 In addition to the board members listed below, each year, the board of directors elects a supplier representative and up to two associate directors. Those appointments will be made this summer.

President — Raleigh Jenkins, ABC Pest Pool and Lawn Services, Houston, Texas

President-Elect — Kevin Kordek, A-Active Termite & Pest Control, Virginia Beach, Va.

Treasurer — Roy A. Johnson, Johnson Pest Control, Sevierville, Tenn.

Secretary — Laura Simpson, Dugas Pest Control of Baton Rouge, Baton Rouge, La.

Immediate Past President — Bruce Carter, Carter Services, Farmington, N.M.

Past President Representative —Donnie Blake, OPC Pest Control, Louisville, Ky.

At-Large Director — Bob Dold Jr., Rose Pest Solutions, Northfield, Ill.

At-Large Director — Don S. Jamison, Jamison Pest and Lawn, Memphis, Tenn.

At-Large Director — Dennis Jenkins, ABC Pest & Lawn Services of DFW, Lewisville, Texas

At-Large Director — Karie Keown, Presto-X, Omaha, Neb.

At-Large Director — Mickey Nolen, Nozzle Nolen, West Palm Beach, Fla.

At-Large Director — Kevin C. Pass, Action Pest Control, Evansville, Ind.

At-Large Director — Sheri Spencer, Spencer Pest Control, Melbourne, Fla.

At-Large Director — William A. Tesh, Pest Management Systems, Greensboro, N.C.

At-Large Director — Chuck Tindol, Allgood Pest Solutions, Duluth, Ga.

At-Large Director — Joe Wilson, PermaTreat Pest Control Co., Fredericksburg, Va.

Region #1 Director — Joseph J. Pestana III, J.P. Pest Services, Milford, N.H.

Region #2 Director — Julee B. Efird, Modern Exterminating Co., Jacksonville, N.C.

Region #3 Director — Rene Kesecker, Good Earth Pest Company, Corvallis, Ore.

Region #4 Director — Bert Putterman, Arizona Exterminating Company, Phoenix, Ariz.

Region #5 Director — Normand Doiron, Orkin PCO Services, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada

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LAST CHANCE:

PCT Bed Bug Seminars to be Held Next Month
RICHFIELD, OHIO — For the third year in a row, The PCT Media Group is partnering with industry suppliers to bring bed bug educational seminars across the United States. The PCT Seminar Series “Bed Bugs: A Rapidly Emerging Public Health Threat,” will head to Boston on Aug. 4 and Orlando on Aug. 18 with two highly regarded speakers at each event. Both locations will feature a pest management professional panel discussion. Michael Potter, extension entomologist, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Ky., and Christian Hardigree, assistant president and chief of staff, UNLV, Las Vegas, will speak at the Boston event. In Orlando, Rick Cooper, technical director, Cooper Pest Solutions, Lawrenceville, N.J., and Hardigree will be the featured speakers.
For more information, call PCT’s Conference Division at 800/456-0707 or visit www.bedbugseminars.com. CEUs will be available (based on state approvals).

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BASF Updates Web Site
ST. LOUIS — The BASF Pest Control Solutions Web site for pest management professionals now includes current information about the company’s new products and post-merger organization, including the new sales and technical representatives serving the United States. Visit pestcontrol.basf.us for news about BASF Pest Control Solutions and to access a variety of information for pest management professionals, including product information, training, literature and marketing tools.

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Target Specialty Products Named Exclusive Distributor for Drexel’s Master Fume

SANTA FE SPRINGS, CALIF. — Drexel Chemical Co. has named Target Specialty Products its exclusive distributor of Master Fume, a new sulfuryl fluoride, currently registered for structural fumigations in California and Hawaii.

Ben Johnson, president and chief operating officer of Drexel Chemical Co., made the announcement in May at a meeting hosted by Drexel and Target Specialty Products in Newport Beach, Calif.

“We are honored to be selected as the exclusive distributor of Master Fume, and eager to introduce the product, and Drexel’s stewardship program to the marketplace,” stated Dean Osborn, Target’s fumigation business manager.

More than 60 key representatives from the fumigation industry, including regulators from Los Angeles and Orange County agricultural commissioner’s offices attended the event. In addition, Dr. Michael Rust and Don Reierson of the University of California, Riverside’s Urban Entomology Department attended the meeting.

Drexel has developed a full-service stewardship program that includes training on its technologically advanced Windows-based calculator designed exclusively for Master Fume.
Action Pest Control Plans 2009 Food and Grain Pest Seminar for July 29

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Comings & Goings

If your company has added new personnel, send a photo and press release to jdorsch@giemedia.com.

MGK Company has added J.B. Howell as south central sales representative to handle sales and technical support for MGK’s Professional Pest Control product line in New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Adams Bird Control & Consulting has appointed Colorado State University graduate Justin Robison to its wildlife planning and consulting team. Robison holds a degree in wildlife biology.

Bernard F. Wendell Jr., manager of education and training for Arrow Exterminating Company, Long Island, N.Y., passed the Entomological Society of America’s Associate Certified Entomologist exam.

Roland Rhodes has been re-appointed to the Kansas Board of Agriculture. This re-appointment will add four more years to the 13 years he has served on the board.

Glen W. Rollins and Larry L. Prince have been elected to Rollins’ board of directors, increasing its number of directors to nine. Rollins is vice president of Rollins and president and COO of Orkin. Prince is chairman of the executive committee of the board of directors for Genuine Parts Company.

Barbara Hunter, director of imported commodities for Western Fumigation, received the 21st Spirit of the Port Award from the Delaware River Port Community. Hunter is the first woman to receive the honor. She has been with Western since 1975 and has worked with the Delaware River Ports since 1979.

Eric VanHouten joined Copesan as vice president of operations. Most recently, VanHouten served as director of operations for Waste Management.

MistAway Systems hired Paul Gilbert as director of sales. Gilbert has been involved with the pest control industry for 26 years and he has been in the mosquito misting segment for the last five.

Harvey L. Massey, CEO and founder of Orlando, Fla.-based Massey Services, has been inducted as a Laureate into the Junior Achievement Mid-Florida Business Hall of Fame. Massey also has been named recipient of the 2009 James B. Greene Economic Development Award by the Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission (EDC).

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PCO News

Advanced Services, Augusta, Ga., recently teamed with the mixed-use neighborhood Hammond’s Ferry to raise $3,000 to benefit Leukemia and Lymphoma Society research by co-sponsoring “Springfest on the Savannah.” The May event included an afternoon of wine tasting, haircuts and ice cream sundaes. Advanced Services also sponsored free rides for attendees on the Patriot Riverboat.

Suburban Exterminating, Smithtown, N.Y., and EnviroSafe of Wyoming, Mich., received International IPM Excellence Awards for their green pest control programs. The awards were presented in March at the International IPM Symposium in Portland, Ore.

Massey Services of Orlando, Fla., launched a new television advertising campaign known as “My Guy Doesn’t Do That!” featuring the first television debut of Massey Services’ GreenUP landscape services. Massey Services’ marketing department developed the new ad campaign in partnership with David Nixon Productions (DNP Studios) and Massey Communications. The campaign will continue to air in 12 markets through October.

HomeTeam Pest Defense acquired Raburn Pest Control and Lindsey Termite and Pest Control, both of Tampa, Fla., and the assets of PestBear in Atlanta, Ga. Bob Wanzer, CEO and president of HomeTeam Pest Defense, said the acquisitions offer HomeTeam an opportunity to expand in important geographic areas.

Black Pest Prevention, which has operations in Charlotte, N.C., and Charleston, S.C., has installed DriveCam video event recorders in all of its company vehicles.

Carolina Pest Management, founded in 1939 by Rev. E. David Dodd, Sr., celebrated 70 years in business in May. Originally located in Fuquay Springs, N.C., the company has been headquartered in Monroe since 1951. In 2007, Carolina Pest earned NPMA’s QualityPro designation.

Terminix announced its international partner, Servicios de Occidente, located in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, recently received its ISO 9001 certification. The company notes this achievement took more than 16 months of hard work by all members of the Terminix team.

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Action Pest Control Plans 2009 Food and Grain Pest Seminar for July 29

EVANSVILLE, IND. — Action Pest Control will host its 11th annual Food and Grain Industry Pest Management Seminar on July 29, at the Southern Indiana Career and Technical Center in Evansville, Ind.

This year’s keynote speaker is industry consultant Jeff McGovern. “Jeff is new to our seminar. He’s a popular speaker at Purdue and is always entertaining whatever his topic might be,” says Scott Robbins, Action’s technical director.

Joining McGovern as a new speaker this year is Ed Hosoda of Cardinal Professional Products. “Ed is another veteran speaker with a great background in fumigation. We went looking for fresh speakers to provide more variety and perspective for our audience this year and we got two of the best,” Robbins added.

For more information on the seminar, including the full agenda and a downloadable registration form, visit the News and Announcements section at www.actionpest.com.

CEPA Elects a New President During PestEx 2009
Editor’s note: Frances McKim, editor of UK-based Pest magazine, filed the following report after attending this CEPA meeting held in London during PestEx 2009.
LONDON — The Confederation of European Pest Control Associations (CEPA) held its General Assembly meeting during PestEx 2009, in April.

CEPA Director General Rob Fryatt reported on what has been another successful and busy year. Membership increased, events were well attended, the interface with other industry bodies had strengthened and the standing of CEPA within the European Commission in Brussels had risen.

After four years at the helm, President Robert Stuyt stepped down and Gunnar Ackerblom, from Swedish servicing company Anticimex, was elected president. Ackerblom will be joined by two vice-presidents: Frédéric Verwilghen, vice president of the Belgium Pest Control Association, and Patrick Vernié from Bayer, representing manufacturers.

In addition, CEPA held two seminars. The first was aimed at opportunities available to the smaller national associations and the second addressed progress on the European pest control industry’s project with the European Committee for Standardization.

CEPA was pleased to welcome as a guest at the meeting, Junichiro Katayama, the president of FAOPMA, their sister organization in Asia. As part of the growing collaboration between CEPA and FAOPMA, Katayama offered all delegates an invitation to attend the forthcoming FAOPMA conference and exhibition to be held in Beijing in November 2009.

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Date Book

Send your announcement at least 14 weeks in advance to jdorsch@giemedia.com. For additional dates, visit www.pctonline.com/events.

Aug. 4: PCT Seminar Series — Bed Bugs: A rapidly emerging public health threat, Boston. Contact: 800/456-0707 or visit www.bedbugseminars.com.

Aug. 4-6: Mexican Association of Pest Control Professionals’ Expo Control de Plagas, Mexico City. Contact: info@expocontroldeplagas.org.mx or visit www.expocontroldeplagas.org.mx.

Aug. 6-8: NPMA’s Carolinas/Mid-Atlantic Summer Conference 2009, Savannah, Ga. Contact: NPMA, 703/352-6762 or visit www.npmapestworld.org.

Aug. 18: PCT Seminar Series — Bed Bugs, Orlando. Contact: See Aug. 4.

Aug. 30-Sept. 2: ASPCRO Annual Conference, Denver. Contact: Bonnie Rabe 505/646-2133 or brabe@nmda.nmsu.ed.

Sept. 11-12: Supervision Training by Lloyd Smigel, Dallas. Contact: Terry Holmes, 888/711-3232 or terrycare@att.net.

Sept. 27-30: RISE-CropLife America 2009 Annual Meeting, Ritz-Carlton, Orlando Grande Lakes, Fla. Contact:  202/872-3860 or visit www.pestfacts.org.