WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD News) — USDA currently reports 12 cases of New World screwworm in the United States, but industry leaders say those figures depend on producers reporting suspected cases.
Bernt Nelson with the American Farm Bureau Federation says there’s concern some producers may hesitate to report cases because of the possibility of quarantines.
“Another challenge that we need to really pay attention to is that New World screwworm eradication relies heavily on the reporting of suspected cases. Now, there’s kind of a concern that farmers might hesitate to notify authorities due to potential consequences, quarantines, or, you know, the possibility of triggering a broader quarantine zone that could affect neighbors or the surrounding communities.”
Texas officials are also stressing the importance of reporting suspected cases. State Rep. Janie Lopez says producers should remain alert while continuing to report any concerns.
“So it’s very important that people are on alert. We don’t want to scare anybody because the state is doing everything that we need to do at the state level to stop the spread of this, but it’s very important that people do report it if they notice something. It’s very important to stop the spread even further.”
Members of the South Texas agricultural community are also calling for more producer education, continued state support and answers about potential financial assistance if New World screwworm cases increase.
Lopez says there is currently no funding available, but multiple state agencies are actively responding.
“There’s currently no funding available for anybody, but what we do have is we have the Department of Health and Human Services available. We have the Texas Animal Health Commission as well and the Texas Parks and Wildlife that are all hands on. They have hundreds of employees that are out on surveillance and monitoring as well, doing inspections. There’s some free training for those that are interested in becoming an inspector.”
The free training is available through Texas A&M AgriLife Extension.
USDA officials also continue encouraging producers to closely monitor livestock and inspect facilities where injuries could allow screwworm infestations to develop.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says expanding sterile fly production remains USDA’s top priority.
“We really got to work last spring, February of 2025, invested about a billion and a half dollars in new sterile fly facilities, began outfitting facilities in Mexico; we have the facility coming online in the next few weeks, we began building that out last year. The FDA has now fast-tracked about a dozen new treatments that would take a few years to get to market, but we’re ready to go, and our veterinarians are trained up on them.”
Rollins says USDA expects to produce 400 million sterile flies each week by next year and remains focused on containing the pest.
USDA Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden says the department’s efforts have already delayed the pest’s arrival in the United States by about a year.
“The best science predicted the screwworm would have arrived in the summer of 25, not the summer of 26. This year’s delay allowed us to put a plan in place we’ve got the facility in Panama off the ground and producing. The facility in Mexico soon will join it, and then it will be followed next year by the facility at Moore Air Base. We will have more than enough sterile flies to push this pest not only out of the United States, but eventually back down to the Darien Gap where it belongs.”
Vaden says producers can find information on where the pest has been detected, how to identify it, and available treatment resources on the USDA website.
LEARN MORE: Screwworm.gov | Unified Government Response To Protect the United States
