What do cockroaches eat? Almost anything. They prefer starches, sweets, grease and meat scraps, and when those run out they eat paper, glue, soap and hair. They live about a month without food but only about a week without water.
What do cockroaches eat in a house?
- Starches: bread, rice, pasta, potatoes.
- Sweets and sugar: spilled juice, dates, biscuits.
- Grease: oil built up behind the oven and on the extractor.
- Meat and leftovers in the bin and sink.
- Pet food left out overnight.
And when there is no food?
| They eat | Where it is |
|---|---|
| Cardboard and paper | Storage boxes and old books |
| Glue and starch | Wallpaper backing and book bindings |
| Soap and toothpaste | The bathroom |
| Hair and dead skin | Drains and under furniture |
| Dead roaches and droppings | Inside the harbourage itself |
That is why a clean home can still get cockroaches. Cleaning lowers numbers but does not starve them out.
How long do they last without food and water?
- Without food: about a month.
- Without water: about a week, less for German cockroaches.
So water matters more than food. A small leak under the sink is enough to sustain a colony.
How to use this in control
- Dry the area: fix leaks and wipe the sink dry before bed.
- Remove competing food so they go for the gel: no dishes overnight and a lidded bin.
- Apply cockroach gel in small dots near harbourages. They eat it and pass it on.
- Do not spray over the gel. Spray makes them avoid it.
- Clean grease behind the oven and extractor, because it competes with the bait.
- Switch gel type if they stop taking it after a few weeks.
Products from Orkida
- Advion cockroach gel by Syngenta
- Maxforce Forte gel by Envu (formerly Bayer)
- Demand CS by Syngenta
- Catchmaster glue boards
- Economy German cockroach control kit
Cockroach diet FAQs
Do cockroaches eat clothes?
They chew clothes with food or sweat stains. They do not eat clean fabric the way moths do.
Do they eat plastic?
No, but they chew through thin bags to reach the food inside.
Do cockroaches eat each other?
Yes when food is short. They eat the dead, the weak and egg cases.
If I cut off food, will they die?
Not quickly. But the gel becomes the only food available and control works faster.