Lawmakers introduce the ‘STOP Screwworm Act’ to protect U.S. livestock

To help combat the growing threat of the New World Screwworm, lawmakers in border states introduced the STOP Screwworm Act.

The bill aims to fund a new sterile fly production facility in the U.S. to tackle the growing threat of the flesh-eating maggot. With support from the NCBA and other cattle groups, the bill would use sterile insect techniques to stop the pest from spreading into the United States, the same technique used in the 1960s to eliminate NWS from the states.

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Representative Henry Cuellar (D-TX), who sits on the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, spoke exclusively with RFD NEWS about what Congress is doing to address screwworm concerns, including funding for a sterile fly production facility in Mexico.
HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy calls on cattle producers to retain breeding cows while Ivomec receives emergency authorization to prevent New World screwworm.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller discusses the state’s latest efforts to prevent the New World screwworm from reaching Texas.
Early indications suggest the U.S. cattle industry may be nearing the end of its liquidation phase. Oklahoma State University livestock economist Dr. Derrell Peel says the industry could be at or near the cyclical low.
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.

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