More money could be on the way to help get a handle on the New World Screwworm.
House lawmakers have filed an amendment to next year’s budget for USDA. The move would supply millions in preventive dollars.
It would increase preparedness spending to $10 million, up from $5.5 million in the original proposal. APHIS says the last time their response plan for screwworms was updated was in 2018, and they are calling for it to be updated given the current situation with Mexican cattle imports.
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Mexico’s tougher, two-step treatment and added checkpoints are catching cases before they can spread—good news for producers near the border.
Fewer placements and historically low marketings point to tighter cattle supplies ahead, with Nebraska and Kansas gaining ground as Texas feedlots face supply pressure and the threat of New World Screwworm.
What is it like working cattle with an outbreak of New World Screwworm so close to home? Wayne Cockrell, with the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, joined us on Wednesday to discuss.
“We believe that it is just a matter of days or weeks... before we see New World screwworm in Texas.”
