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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Analysts warn the closed U.S.-Mexico border is straining cattle supplies and packing capacity. StoneX and USDA data point to long-term industry shifts.
Border closures tied to the threat of New World Screwworm continue to stall Mexican fed cattle imports, tightening U.S. feeder cattle supplies over time — triggering feedlot closures that hinder herd rebuilding efforts, threaten the beef supply chain, and shrink production while consumer prices stay elevated.
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The USDA opened a new sterile fly-dispersal facility at Moore Air Base in South Texas to prevent a potential outbreak of New World screwworm and protect the small U.S. cattle herd.
RFD NEWS Correspondent Frank McCaffrey was in Mission, Texas, where state and federal officials addressed growers and producers at a round table event hosted at a citrus grower’s facility. He shows us how welcome news was all around.
