Sales of bedbug pesticides skyrocket amid panic

Sales of bedbug pesticides and prevention products have soared in Korea, with G Market reporting an 813 percent increase in pesticide sales and a 610% rise in bedding cleaners.

A online community user posted a picture of a bedbug found on the user's trench coat. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Bedbug pesticide sales jumped 813 percent in the past week compared to last year for G Market, a major ecommerce operator, as panic over the pests gains traction through social media.

Sales for bedding cleaners rose 610 percent, waterproof covers for beds and mattresses to prevent bedbugs rose 111 percent, and even sales for high temperature steamers rose 25 percent, according to sales records from G Market on Tuesday.

For ecommerce operator 11st, sales for pesticides including insect repellents and insect screens each rose 109 percent for the same period.

“It seems there is a lot of public anxiety as bedbug sightings have been reported all over the country,” said a worker at G Market. “Demand for products such as bedbug traps that did not sell last year has increased,” the insider added.

Pesticide and medication for bug bites at a pharmacy in Seoul is pictured. Picture taken on Wednesday. [NEWS1]

The skyrocketing sales for bedbug extermination and prevention chemicals and equipment come amid more reports of bedbug sightings.

A post titled “Discovered one bedbug on my trench coat” was updated onto an online community site on Tuesday.

“[After coming from outdoors] I took off my clothes and put it on the desk … and there was a bug on my trench coat. I caught it with a tissue and when I pressed on it, blood came out … it was really the infamous bedbug,” the post stated.

“I don’t know how it got on me,” the community user said, but added that on the day the bug was discovered, the user “took the Mugunghwa train from Suwon station to Daejeon station, then took the KTX to Dongdaegu station, and then took the subway to a cram school.”

Wild speculation about the bedbugs being transported through courier deliveries and parcels has also been circulating in “mom cafes,” or online communities of mothers.

A common misconception is that bedbugs have a preference for wood, which has led to concerns over bedbugs attaching themselves to paper-based parcel boxes.

Comments such as “we must shake off delivery boxes before going in the house,” and “aren’t bedbugs being transported all over the country,” and “I don’t think I should bring in paper boxes for a while,” are being posted.

But there is no actual confirmation that bedbugs have been spreading through trains or delivery services. An insider at a distribution company said the rumors about bedbugs are “groundless,” adding that “preventive measures are already in place. There are no plans to conduct additional preventive measures because of bedbugs.”

BY KIM JU-YEON, CHOI SUN-EUL, LEE SU-MIN [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]