New efforts are underway in Mexico to bring the New World Screwworm under control. USDA is spending money to breed sterile flies, a popular control method for the pest.
It is welcome news to producers in cattle country, including Texas, where ag economists warn the costs of a U.S.-based outbreak would be detrimental.
“For Texas alone in 2024, if we had New World Screwworm at the rates that we saw in the past, it’d be $1.8 billion to the Texas economy and about $732 million just for the producers,” said Elliott Dennis.
Dennis says the pest can wipe out as much as 60 percent of an animal’s value.
Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins is also weighing in, and she echoes the recent warnings.
“The NWS is a scourge that is making its way from Latin America up through Mexico, and if it hits America, it is going to be absolutely devastating to our cattle industry. At the top of the list, frankly. So a lot of our industries.”
Mexico and the U.S. are renovating an existing fruit fly facility. Once running, it will produce up to 100 million sterile flies each week. This kind of population control is a popular form of eradication.
Cattle imports from Mexico have been suspended since earlier this month. However, USDA’s Chief Veterinarian says they could resume by the end of the year. She tells Reuters that the Department will not resume imports until they are comfortable with Mexico’s surveillance. Right now, imports are suspended indefinitely on a monthly basis.
Marilyn Schlake with the UNL Department of Agricultural Economics joined us for a closer look at the evolving role of livestock sale barns.
January 27, 2026 12:19 PM
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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.
January 23, 2026 11:56 AM
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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.
January 21, 2026 12:00 PM
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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.
January 16, 2026 01:28 PM
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January 16, 2026 09:57 AM
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Dr. Rosslyn Biggs with the Oklahoma State University Center for Rural Veterinary Medicine shares insight into biosecurity, preparedness, and animal health concerns facing livestock producers as New World screwworm outbreaks continue in Mexico.
January 07, 2026 12:57 PM
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New World Screwworm cases in Mexico, including one within 200 miles of the U.S. border, are adding pressure to livestock markets and trade decisions.
January 06, 2026 12:09 PM
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Preserving equity through active risk management remains critical in a volatile, supply-driven market.
January 06, 2026 06:00 AM
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As markets anticipate a return to normal trading following the New Year’s holiday, the possibility of the southern border re-opening to cattle is capturing much attention.
December 30, 2025 11:28 AM
