Pest Control for Restaurants & Takeaways in Kent
For a food business a pest sighting is never just a nuisance. It is a hygiene rating, an environmental health visit and, at worst, a closure notice. Protego provides discreet, properly documented pest control for restaurants, cafes, takeaways and pubs across West Kent, from our base in Tonbridge, with visits arranged around service wherever access allows.
Call us now (24/7)
07897 314478
Send us an Email
info@protegopestcontrol.co.uk
What the law actually requires
Pest control in a food business is not optional good practice, it is a legal requirement. Regulation (EC) No 852/2004, retained in UK law, states at Annex II, Chapter IX, point 4 that "adequate procedures are to be in place to control pests". Chapter I adds that premises must be laid out to permit good food hygiene practices, "and, in particular, pest control".
The regulation deliberately does not tell you how. That is left to you and to the environmental health officer who inspects you. In practice, adequate procedures means a system an inspector can actually see: who your provider is, where your monitoring devices sit, what was found on each visit and what you did about it.
Why pest evidence hits your hygiene rating three times
The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme scores three separate things, and pest activity can damage all of them in one visit. Hygienic food handling suffers because live activity or droppings near food is a direct hygiene failure. Cleanliness and condition of the building suffers because entry points, gaps and harbourage count against the structure. Confidence in management suffers because if pests were present and your own monitoring did not pick it up, that reads as a management problem rather than bad luck.
That is why a single incident can pull a strong rating down sharply, and why the paperwork matters nearly as much as the treatment.
The pests that matter most in a commercial kitchen
Rodents are the most common reason for a call. Mice in particular exploit the warmth, shelter and constant food supply of a commercial kitchen, and they pass through gaps far smaller than most people expect. German cockroaches are the species most associated with warm indoor food environments, and they harbour in exactly the places that are hardest to inspect: motor housings, cracked tiling, behind and beneath appliances and inside service voids. Flies matter both as a contamination route and as a signal about how waste is being handled. Stored product insects turn up in dry goods and can often be traced back to a delivery rather than to the premises itself.
Pest problem in your kitchen?
Call us now (24/7)
07897 314478
Send us an Email
info@protegopestcontrol.co.uk
What we provide for food premises
An environmental health officer asking "what pest control do you have?" is looking for a system, not a receipt. Planned support for a food business should leave you with a record you can hand over on the day, without hunting for it.
- Scheduled visits at a frequency matched to the site, not a fixed template
- A site plan showing numbered monitoring device locations
- A signed service report after every visit, covering findings, actions and recommendations
- A pest activity log so your staff can record sightings between visits
- Corrective action records showing what was found, what caused it and how it was resolved
- COSHH information for any products used on your site
- Visits arranged around service hours where access and scheduling allow
What Our Clients Say
See what customers across Tonbridge and West Kent say about working with Protego. Click the button below to view more of our live Google reviews.
"I had a rodent issue at home (thanks to my cat bringing them home!). I called Matt who was recommended to me and he came to visit next day.
He is friendly and informative and dealt with the problem really thoroughly. Happy to recommend Protego Pest Control."
"Very prompt and reliable pest control service.
I have trusted Matt to deal with the annual appearance of wasps’ nests in my old timber-framed house efficiently and effectively for many years."
"Matt responded promptly to our initial request for help and has provided a very efficient service.
I would have no hesitation in recommending Protego Pest Control to anyone in need of a quick, clean and total eradication of a rodent problem."
"Very knowledgeable of pest issues, efficient timely and friendly; someone who is good do do business with when the dreaded need arises"
"Excellent service and solutions delivered by Matt at Protego Pest Control based in Tonbridge."
"Quick and efficient service dealing with a wasps nest. Matt is a lovely man who made everything easy."
Where the problem usually starts
In food premises the entry point is rarely the kitchen itself. Deliveries bring stored product insects in with the goods. Waste and bin areas draw rodents and flies to the back of the building, and a propped fire door during a busy service is all the access a mouse needs. Drainage and service voids connect neighbouring units, which is why a problem in a shared parade can arrive from two doors down and have nothing to do with your own housekeeping.
That is also why treatment on its own rarely settles it. Finding the route in, and closing it, is usually what stops the same issue returning next quarter. Where that is the main need, our pest proofing service covers the exclusion work.
Restaurant and takeaway pest control FAQs
Do we legally need a pest control contract?
Not specifically. The law requires "adequate procedures" to control pests, not a contract as such. For most food premises, though, a documented contract is simply the most practical way to demonstrate those procedures to an inspector, because it produces the visit records, site plan and corrective action trail on its own.
Will a pest problem affect our food hygiene rating?
It can, in three places at once: hygienic food handling, the cleanliness and condition of the building, and confidence in management. The third one catches people out, because it is scored on whether your own systems detected and dealt with the issue, not just on whether pests were present on the day.
Can you visit outside our opening hours?
Usually, yes. Where access and scheduling allow, visits can be arranged before opening, after close or between services so we are not working around a live kitchen. It is worth raising at the survey stage so it is built into the plan from the start.
What documentation do we get?
A signed service report for every visit covering findings, actions and recommendations, a site plan with numbered device locations, a log for staff to record sightings between visits, corrective action records, and COSHH information for anything used on site. Records should be kept for at least two years and stay accessible to both your staff and an inspector.
How quickly can you attend if we find something during service?
We operate 24/7 and aim to attend promptly. Response times depend on technician availability and where you are, but as a Tonbridge-based company we can often reach premises across West Kent within hours. Call 07897 314478 and we will give you a realistic time rather than a stock answer.
We are a small takeaway. Is a contract overkill?
Not necessarily, but it is a fair question. Some small sites are better served by reactive support plus good proofing. The deciding factors are usually whether you share waste or drainage with neighbouring units, how much dry goods storage you hold, and whether you have had activity before. We would rather tell you a contract is unnecessary than sell you one you do not need.
Do you treat cockroaches in commercial kitchens?
Yes. Commercial kitchens are the environment German cockroaches are most associated with, and they are rarely resolved in a single visit because of where they harbour. Treatment normally runs alongside inspection of appliance housings, service voids and drainage, plus follow-up to confirm the population has actually gone rather than moved. See our cockroach control service for more.
Can you help us prepare for an EHO inspection?
We can make sure the pest control side of your file is in order: current records, a legible site plan, up-to-date service reports and evidence that recommendations have been acted on. We cannot speak for the rest of your food safety management system, but the pest element is often the part businesses are least prepared to evidence.
Do you work with pubs and cafes as well as restaurants?
Yes. Pubs, cafes, bakeries, delis, dark kitchens and staff canteens all sit in the same regulatory position as a restaurant. The pressures differ, a wet-led pub with a cellar is a different problem from a high-turnover takeaway, so the plan should differ too.
What areas do you cover?
We are based in Tonbridge and cover West Kent, including Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells, Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Paddock Wood and West Malling, plus selected nearby parts of Surrey and Sussex. Contact us to check availability for your area.
Talk to us about pest control for your kitchen
Whether you need a one-off visit because something has turned up mid-service, or a planned arrangement that keeps your records inspection-ready, call 07897 314478 or send us a few details and we will tell you honestly what your site needs.
Call us now (24/7)
07897 314478
Send us an Email
info@protegopestcontrol.co.uk
