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The Wire — PCB News Desk

Pest control news, in plain English

A running archive of regulatory updates, vector-borne disease alerts, invasive species reports, and pest-industry research — translated for homeowners. Reviewed by Derek Giordano, Licensed PCO. Updated regularly by our editorial team.

11News posts
9Trusted sources
WeeklyCadence
2026 · June
2026 · May
30May 2026
Invasive

Spotted Lanternfly Host-Plant List Hits 103 — and 56 of Those Plants Grow in North America

New research confirms the invasive planthopper is a true generalist with plenty to eat across the continent. That makes eradication unlikely and containment — which depends on ordinary people — the realistic goal.

Source: Entomology Today / host-plant research
26May 2026
Industry

Another Family Pest Company Sells to a PE-Backed Roll-Up — Here's What That Means for Customers

A 50-year-old Tucson firm joined a national platform in May. A small deal that perfectly illustrates the consolidation reshaping who services your home — and why "local, family-owned" is now a branding decision.

Source: Business Wire / Thompson Street Capital
22May 2026
Industry

Big Agrochemical Is Reshuffling — and Betting on Biologicals and RNA Sprays Over Old-School Chemicals

A $252M divestiture, a biologicals acquisition, and new RNA-based products in a single month. The industry's biggest players are reallocating toward targeted, biological pest control. What it means for what reaches your shelf.

Source: DataM Intelligence market report
19May 2026
Industry

The PCT Top 100 Turns 25: What the Industry's Biggest List Says About Your Local Exterminator

A quarter-century of the trade's flagship ranking is the clearest record of how the pest control business has consolidated. The most useful customer question has shifted from "Are you local?" to "Who owns you?"

Source: Pest Control Technology
12May 2026
Outbreak

CDC Issues Hantavirus Advisory After Cruise Ship Outbreak: What Homeowners Should Take From It

The CDC's HAN advisory on the MV Hondius Andes virus cluster is a cruise-ship story. The reason it should change how you think about rodents at home is not.

Source: CDC Health Alert Network
12May 2026
Invasive

Spotted Lanternfly Nymphs Are Hatching on Long Island — Here's What's Happening Right Now

Cornell Cooperative Extension reports degree-day thresholds for first-instar emergence have been crossed in eastern Long Island. What the 1st instar looks like and what it means for the season.

Source: American Vineyard Magazine / Cornell CCE
5May 2026
Industry

Orkin's 2026 Mosquito Cities List: LA Stays #1, But the Real Story Is the Midwest

Milwaukee jumped 15 spots, Minneapolis climbed 6, and three new cities entered the top 50. Orkin's annual ranking reflects where new residential mosquito treatments grew fastest.

Source: Orkin / Pest Management Professional
5May 2026
Public Health

CDC: Tick-Bite ER Visits Up 25% Over April 2025 — What to Do This Season

Johns Hopkins researchers and the CDC point to mild winter, mast-year acorns, and an early warm-up. Lyme cases could exceed 500,000 in 2026.

Source: CDC Newsroom / Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School
1May 2026
Regulation

EPA Releases Draft Fungicide Strategy: What's In It and What Happens Next

EPA opened a 60-day comment window on its draft Fungicide Strategy, which applies endangered-species mitigation to roughly 41 million acres of treated U.S. cropland.

Source: EPA Pesticides Newsroom
2026 · April