Almost 200 ag groups are urging USDA to create a domestic sterile fly facility to combat New World screwworm

One hundred and seventy-five ag groups are urging the government to quickly build a sterile fly facility.
Farm Bureaus and cattle groups are standing behind the push.

The groups thanked USDA for partnering with Panama to set up a facility as part of its five-step readiness plan. They acknowledged the department’s plan to build a facility at Moore Air Base in south Texas. However, they say much work needs to be done.

They penned a letter urging the Senate to quickly secure funding for the facility.

Related Stories
Marilyn Schlake with the UNL Department of Agricultural Economics joined us for a closer look at the evolving role of livestock sale barns.
Nearly everyone in the South Texas ag community appears extremely worried about the potential of a New World screwworm epidemic, according to a local veterinarian. RFD NEWS Correspondent Frank McCaffrey reports.
Wayne Cockrell with the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association joined us to discuss preparedness, producer awareness, and the industry’s response to New World screwworm concerns.
Texas Commissioner of Agriculture Sid Miller joined us to discuss data center expansion, farmland preservation, rural economic impacts, and imminent cattle biosecurity concerns affecting agriculture today.
Dr. Rosslyn Biggs with the Oklahoma State University Center for Rural Veterinary Medicine shares insight into biosecurity, preparedness, and animal health concerns facing livestock producers as New World screwworm outbreaks continue in Mexico.
New World Screwworm cases in Mexico, including one within 200 miles of the U.S. border, are adding pressure to livestock markets and trade decisions.
Preserving equity through active risk management remains critical in a volatile, supply-driven market.
As markets anticipate a return to normal trading following the New Year’s holiday, the possibility of the southern border re-opening to cattle is capturing much attention.