WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD NEWS) — New World screwworm and the nation’s agricultural trade balance were among the top issues discussed Wednesday as Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins testified before the House Agriculture Committee.
The hearing comes just hours after the USDA confirmed New World screwworm in a three-week-old calf in Zavala County, Texas — the first detection of the livestock pest in the state since 1966.
In her hearing before House lawmakers, Rollins said the USDA has activated its response plan and is working with state officials to contain the outbreak.
“We have now activated our New World Screwworm Response playbook, which includes detailed protocols and procedures for just this scenario,” Rollins told lawmakers. “We’ve established a 20km zone around the detection, implementing quarantines, movement controls, and surveillance in the region. In fact, I’ll be there next week. We have expedited a targeted release of sterile flies in the affected area to prevent the pests from reproducing, and are increasing trapping for New World screwworm flies along the border. We are ramping up surveillance and also management of our wildlife.”
Rollins emphasized that New World screwworm is not considered a food safety concern.
“In short, we are using every tool at our disposal to eliminate this threat to our livestock producers and to our national security, and we will actively keep you updated,” she said. “Thankfully, this pest does not represent any sort of challenge to our food safety, and that’s a really important message.”
She added that the USDA has successfully eradicated screwworm in the past and is confident it can do so again.
“This is a flesh-eating pest that lands on mammals, on livestock, on deer, etc. It is not a threat to our food supply. We have beaten screwworm before, and we will do so again.”
Building Sterile Fly Capacity
Rollins told lawmakers the department began preparing for a potential New World screwworm outbreak well before the recent detection in Texas.
She said USDA recognized early that additional sterile fly production capacity would be needed to combat the pest.
“I went to the president, and I said, ‘This is going to be a massive problem because we need 400 million to 500 million flies per week to beat this back,’” Rollins said. “We only have one facility in our entire hemisphere, and it’s only producing 100 million flies per week.”
According to Rollins, the administration received immediate approval to begin permitting and construction on a new sterile fly production facility in Mission, Texas.
The facility, which the USDA broke ground on several months ago, is expected to become the world’s largest sterile fly production center upon completion.
Rollins said the facility could begin operating next year and produce approximately 300 million sterile flies per week. Combined with the roughly 100 million sterile flies currently produced in Panama, USDA hopes the expanded capacity will help contain and eventually eradicate the pest.
She cautioned lawmakers that complete eradication could take until next year.
Trade Deficit Remains a Top Priority
Beyond animal health concerns, lawmakers also questioned Rollins about the nation’s agricultural trade balance.
The secretary said the administration inherited a $45 billion agricultural trade deficit after the country operated with an agricultural trade surplus in early 2021.
Rollins argued that market access challenges in recent years allowed competitors such as Brazil to gain market share traditionally held by U.S. producers.
“As we have begun to reopen the world to American agriculture again, the $45 billion agriculture trade deficit we inherited after leaving with an $8 billion agriculture surplus in early 2021 — more than a $50 billion swing in just four years — saw Brazil and other countries step in and take over what was once an American-owned market,” Rollins said.
According to Rollins, the administration has secured 19 trade deals and trade frameworks over the past year, helping reduce the agricultural trade deficit by roughly 42 percent.
She said USDA expects the deficit to shrink further as additional agreements take effect.
“We’re expecting to drop down into the low 20 percent after this year’s numbers come in and then hopefully get back to a surplus,” Rollins said.
Export Growth Forecast
Rollins told lawmakers that USDA expects strong export performance across several sectors this year, including corn, dairy products, tree nuts, ethanol, and produce.
She said stronger export demand and expanded market access could help improve farm profitability and offset some of the financial pressures producers continue to face from elevated input costs.
The House Agriculture Committee is expected to continue monitoring both USDA’s New World screwworm response and the department’s efforts to improve the nation’s agricultural trade balance in the months ahead.
