Deadly Simple Ant Control with the All-New Sumari System

By Ryan Neff, PhD, MGK Technical Field Specialist

Did you know that ants are consistently one of the top pests for which PMPs would like better control? They are also the number one household and nuisance pest in the United States. While they are beneficial to the environment, they also pose health and property risks such as food contamination and structural damage.

Although small, their vast numbers, complex colony structures and behaviors make them difficult to control. Ant management can be divided into two types of treatments: preventative and curative.

Preventative treatments involve applying materials around the structure or known nesting sites early in the season to either eliminate ants before colonies become too large or as a barrier to keep ants out of a structure. For example, a preventative treatment might involve a barrier application of a repellent product like Onslaught® FastCap Microencapsulated Insecticide or OneGuard® Multi-MoA Insecticide, which provides quick kill and long residual while keeping ants from trailing indoors. Another type of preventative treatment is a broadcast landscape application with a prod-

uct like Sumari® Insecticide, which targets colonies before they get fully established.

Curative applications involve treatments after ants have entered a structure or are becoming a nuisance to customers. These could be first-time treatments or call-back services and typically involve the use of non-repellent concentrates in conjunction with an attractive bait. The combination of the two products exploits the foraging behavior of ants to move an active ingredient deep into a colony.

The all-new Sumari® System from MGK simplifies ant control and boosts productivity, positively impacting Pest Management Professionals’ bottom lines. The system involves two parts – applying non-repellent Sumari® Insecticide concentrate to areas where ants are actively foraging/trailing and applying Sumari® Ant Gel Bait over or around areas

treated with the concentrate. Ants are attracted to the bait, which leads to more contact with the non-repellent concentrate. This attract-and-kill approach reaches deep into the colony, providing long-lasting control through direct contact and ingestion. The Sumari® System was created specifically for PMPs. During development, the MGK team worked directly with PMPs to identify several challenging areas within ant control that were lacking in current product offerings on the market. Boasting flexible labels, only Sumari® brings together the features critical for improved ant control.

Sumari® Insecticide concentrate provides fast-acting and long-lasting control of ants, including multi-queen species, as well as a broad spectrum of other insects. This all-in-one solution can be used indoors and out, including outdoor broadcast. It has no signal word and contains NyGuard® IGR.

Sumari® Ant Gel Bait is a highly palatable, consistent matrix that delivers long-lasting control of ants, including multi-queen species. It kills within 24 hours and eliminates colonies within 1-2 weeks. This new bait can be used indoors and outdoors, including food areas in operation and has no signal word.

Successful ant control starts with the Sumari® System. Get resources and download the Sumari® Insecticide and Sumari® Ant Gel Bait labels at MGK.com/SumariSystem or contact an MGK sales representative or your BWI Companies distributor representative for more information.

don’t get to where we are just by ourselves. It takes a collaborative effort,” he said.

Company growth and continued improvement is an ongoing job for The Bug Master management team.

“We’ve continued to look at how to get better next year. Last year was pretty weird for everybody with COVID but we still enjoyed a 17 percent growth despite that. It’s commitment to excellence. I can’t say enough about the people we work with. They just know how to roll up their sleeves and get it done. I try to emphasize that we all work together and I think everybody has embraced that,” Cantu said.

The Bug Master has evolved since it was founded in 1981 by Ned Ewart. What began as a one-man operation working out of a Volkswagen grew into the thriving business it is today.

“I’ve been here since 1984 so I’ve been here for most of that. In the early 80s we did all residential and commercial properties, everything we do now but over the years we’ve been able to grow the business to where we are now with 50 technicians located all over central Texas and east Texas,” Cantu said.

Cantu now co-owns The Bug Master and works with Ewart’s sons Dauphin and Keld.

“I worked with Ned for 16 years before I had an opportunity to buy into the company. Both of his sons are my partners now and Ned is retired,” he said.

For more information about The Bug Master, visit thebugmaster.com.

Extinguish® Plus fire ant bait combines the knock-down power of an adulticide with the long-lasting control of an insect growth regulator (IGR), killing worker ants and sterilizing the queen. This two-way action eliminates fire ant colonies — and the property damage they cause.

Learn more about Extinguish® Plus at CentralAntControl.com or contact your BWI representative.