The nation’s largest cattle group says they are happy with USDA’s plan of attack against the New World Screwworm. They note that while action is needed, it will be a heavy lift.
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s Ethan Lane says action is crucial right now and notes the proposed facilities will have their work cut out for them.
“You know, to really beat this thing back, we’re gonna need 3 or 4 or 500 million flies per week. This is going to help us get to that target zone, as well as substantial investments in both manpower and equipment with the Mexican government, to ensure that they’re doing the appropriate monitoring and surveillance, not just in cattle populations, but wildlife populations, people, all of those different things, that we know are moving back and forth through Mexico that could potentially carry this fly closer to the U.S. border.”
Senate Ag Committee Chair John Boozman is also on board with the plan. He calls the pest a threat to American agriculture and applauds the efforts to protect rural communities.
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.
February 23, 2026 01:40 PM
·
Texas Ag Commissioner Sid Miller joins us to discuss the cattle herd rebuild, trade concerns, and how ranchers would define “America First” policy priorities.
February 13, 2026 12:50 PM
·
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.
February 12, 2026 10:47 AM
·
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.
February 10, 2026 12:05 PM
·
Top issues facing the beef industry took center stage at CattleCon this year in Nashville.
February 06, 2026 04:58 PM
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.
February 06, 2026 12:07 PM
·
