Orkin Termite Training Facility

Honoree

The Atlanta-based O. Wayne Rollins Foundation pledged a generous gift in 2005 to the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences to help establish the Orkin Termite Training Facility at the Mid-Florida Research and Education Center in Apopka, FL. The first of its kind in Florida, this facility provides statewide training to a wide range of participants, including pest control professionals, government employees and students. In addition, the termite training facility is available for lease by manufacturers and other companies, including pest control firms from northern states where training schedules are restricted by climate.

Otto Orkin founded the Orkin pest control company in 1901. At the age of 14, Otto borrowed fifty cents from his parents to start his own business. He had formulated a poison bait to help farmers in the community of Allentown, Pennsylvania get rid of the rats that had been plaguing them. By 1906 Otto had saved $5,000 and was ready to open his first shop in Richmond, Virginia. From these modest beginnings, the company grew to its stature today, which includes more than 400 locations in North America with over 7,500 employees committed to providing the "World's Best" pest and termite control.

Facility History

The Orkin Termite Training Facility is located at the Mid-Florida Research and Education Center in Apopka, FL. All Florida citizens benefit from research completed at this state-of-the-art facility with both public and private organizations working to identify the most effective inspection and treatment methods for subterranean termites which cause 95 percent of all termite damage in North America.