New Mexico

Next Step in the Screwworm Fight: USDA Announces Opening of Sterile Fly Dispersal Facility in Tampico, Mexico

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 19:31:40 GMT

USDA announced Thursday the opening of a sterile fly dispersal facility in Tampico, Mexico. The Tampico facility will allow USDA to disperse sterile flies aerially across northeastern Mexico, including in Nuevo Leon. This announcement is the next milestone in the fight against New World screwworm (NWS).

“The opening of the Tampico sterile fly dispersal facility is another incredibly important tool in our arsenal to stop the spread of screwworm. The facility will ensure flexibility and responsiveness in northern Mexico, giving us a greater ability to drop sterile flies and continue to push the pest south,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins in a press release . “Stopping the spread of screwworm is a top priority for the entire Trump administration.”

Last week Rollins met with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and her counterpart Secretary Julio Berdegue on the joint response to NWS.

“We are boosting our efforts and completing a joint review of our screwworm operations in Mexico to ensure our protocols are being followed,” she says. “As we enter the winter months , we continue to prioritize the response in Mexico and the rest of our five-pronged plan to protect U.S. livestock and the livelihoods of American farmers and ranchers.”

A proven method for NWS eradication is releasing sterile male flies to mate with wild females collapsing the population over time. There are two methods of dispersing sterile insects – aerial dispersal and ground release chambers. Aerial operations are preferred because they allow for dispersal at a steady rate through a large area and also because sterile insects may be dispersed in areas that are unreachable from the ground. Ground release chambers are used when there’s a need to quickly deploy sterile insects outside of the dispersal facility range.

Learn more about NWS:
The Smell You’ll Never Forget: A Calf Infested with New World Screwworm

According to the press release, USDA continues to disperse 100 million sterile flies per week in Mexico, but until now, aerial operations have been limited to southern Mexico, necessitating the use of ground release chambers in more northern areas of the country. Mass production and targeted dispersal of sterile flies remain critical components of our effective response.

Although Mexico continues to confirm new cases of NWS, the overwhelming majority of these remain in the far southern part of the country, with no significant northward expansion over the past several months. Should that change, the Tampico facility will allow USDA to immediately tackle any cases that occur elsewhere in Mexico.

The two northernmost detections (approximately 70 and 170 miles from the U.S. border, respectively) occurred in Nuevo León, on Sept. 20 and Oct. 5 , in young cattle transported from Chiapas, Mexico.

Neither case is still active and there have been no additional detections of NWS flies in traps or cases in animals in Nuevo Leon. USDA continues to disperse sterile insects in Nuevo Leon, and will now transition from ground release chambers to aerial dispersal in those areas.

USDA produces sterile flies for dispersal at the COPEG facility in Panama. USDA is also investing $21 million to support Mexico’s renovation of an existing fruit fly facility in Metapa — which will double NWS production capacity once complete. With ongoing support from APHIS technical experts, Mexico anticipates this sterile fly production to begin as soon as summer 2026.

To expand our domestic response capacity, USDA has also begun construction on a sterile fly dispersal facility at Moore Air Base in Edinburg, Texas, that is projected to begin operating in early 2026. APHIS is also expediting design and construction of a sterile fly production facility in southern Texas, with a targeted maximum capacity of 300 million sterile flies per week.

USDA continues to work with Mexico’s agriculture authority, SENASICA, to implement the collaborative NWS Action Plan and guide trapping, surveillance and movement protocols to help stop the northward spread of NWS.

Trade Mission While In Mexico

While Rollins was in Mexico last week, she also led the largest U.S. Department of Agriculture agribusiness trade mission in history. During the mission, 41 U.S. businesses, 33 cooperators and agriculture advocacy groups, six state departments of agriculture, and 150 participants conducted more than 500 business-to-business meetings during the three days.

According to a USDA press release , “This was a critical opportunity for American business to further trade ties and for USDA to continue its aggressive response to NWS in Mexico and continue to hold Mexico accountable for its commitments to the 1944 Water Treaty.”

Honored to lead the largest @USDA Agribusiness Trade Mission in US history to Mexico City!

Over three days, our delegation of 41 US businesses, 33 cooperators, 6 state departments of agriculture, and 150 participants held more than 500 business-to-business meetings - deepening a… pic.twitter.com/39rGi9Snhj
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) November 13, 2025

Your Next Read: Preparing for the Battle Continues: USDA Shares Screwworm Update and Releases NWS Playbook

U.S.-Mexico Border Battle Continues As the Threat of New World Screwworm Intensifies

Wed, 24 Sep 2025 20:04:06 GMT

With New World screwworm (NWS) confirmed just 70 miles from the U.S. border , producers, government officials and industry leaders are taking action. Finding NWS along one of the most heavily trafficked commercial thoroughfares in the world from Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, to Laredo, Texas, is a red flag for the industry. Emphasizing the importance of maintaining strong safeguards, it’s time to plan for not “if but when” NWS crosses the border.

On Monday, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins confirmed protecting the U.S. from NWS is non-negotiable and a top priority for President Trump.

UPDATE ON SCREWWORM THREAT:

Protecting the United States from New World Screwworm is non-negotiable and a top priority for @POTUS.@USDA landed boots on the ground this morning in Nuevo Leon, physically inspecting traps and dispersing sterile flies after the detection of the…
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) September 23, 2025

“The southern border remains closed to livestock trade, and we are aggressively expanding trapping and surveillance,” she wrote. “At the same time, we’re expediting operations at our sterile fly dispersal facility at Moore Air Base in Texas .”

On Tuesday, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins reported 80,000 sterile flies were released on “spot” and nearly 200 surge staff had been deployed to Mexico.

Thank you, @IngrahamAngle, for paying attention to this important issue. Due to multiple failures from our southern neighbors and failure to act in the last Admin, the devastating parasite New World Screwworm is knocking on our southern borders door. We’re not waiting, we’re… pic.twitter.com/ZO5Vx5oes8
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) September 24, 2025

Mexico’s Response To New World Screwworm

According to Reuters, Mexican’s agriculture ministry said there is no risk of adult screwworm fly emergence due to the early detection of the infected bovine, which was confirmed on Sept. 21. The infected animal was in a shipment of 100 animals originating from the Gulf Coast state of Veracruz, according to the statement.

Fly traps in northern Mexico have not detected a single screwworm fly.

U.S.-Mexico Border Remains Closed to Cattle Trade

The Mexican border closure remains a topic of debate. The September Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor found 80% of ag economists surveyed oppose reopening the border to Mexican cattle due to screwworm risks.

(Farm Journal)

The border closure has created significant division within the cattle industry with producers, feeders and industry leaders on both sides of the fence.

“We have some cattle people that are glad it’s closed. We’ve got others who are hit pretty hard and are not happy about it,” explains David Anderson, Texas A&M professor and extension specialist — livestock and food product marketing.

NWS is a threat the industry can not ignore, says the ag economist with more than 30 years under his belt.

“I think this is the most serious problem the industry has faced since I’ve been a livestock economist,” he stresses.

From his perspective, keeping the border open with heightened monitoring and surveillance could have potentially been more effective than implementing a total closure.

“If we go back and look at data from the early ‘70s, when we had a big screwworm outbreak in the U.S. and Mexico, the border was open,” he says. “I probably would have leaned to not closing the border to begin with. I understand why you would want to do that, but I don’t know that it’s ended up reducing the likelihood that we’re going to get screwworms, and yet we’re paying a price for that.”

According to Anderson the economic consequences to the border being closed are:

Significant loss of approximately 26,000 imported cattle weekly
Estimated 18% reduction in cattle placements in Southern plains
Contributed to tighter beef supplies and higher consumer prices
Substantial economic hit to cattle feeders and ranchers

At this point, he’s quick to admit keeping the border closed is the best option.

When it comes to reopening the border, Derrell Peel, Extension livestock marketing specialist with Oklahoma State University, suggests the decision is not straightforward.

“Given everything I’ve experienced, it’s probably prudent to leave the border closed,” he says.

He adds any reopening should be “under very, very controlled, limited circumstances.”

Peel emphasizes the need for a collaborative approach with Mexico.

“We’re kind of in it together, and so whether it’s here or there, we’ve got to work together,” he summarizes. “We’re going to need to control it in both places. Otherwise, it’s not going to benefit either one of us.”

He also points out not everybody in Mexico is sorry the border is closed. For example, cattle buyers in Mexico can source cattle cheaper because the border is closed.

“Keeping the border closed does affect the movement of cattle south of the border ... it builds a backstop for cattle movement north,” he adds.

Peel notes cattle from Central America to Panama have increasingly made their way to the Mexican market, which validates NWS movement in Mexico and why recent confirmation has occurred.

“The longer this goes on, the more the Mexican industry will adjust,” he says. “It might permanently change the way the [U.S. and Mexico] work together.”

Texas Rancher Weighs In On Impact of New World Screwworm

Texas rancher Wayne Cockrell says the parasite’s entry into the U.S. is inevitable, suggesting that winter and colder weather might temporarily delay the spread until next April or May. Cockrell, who serves as the Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association director and chair of the cattle health and well-being policy committee, recently joined AgriTalk to talk about NWS.

“We would much rather stop this on Mexico’s southern border than our Southern border,” Cockrell says.

Mexican feeder cattle traditionally represented 30% of Texas feedyard inventory, he adds, but with current restrictions, feedlots are adapting.

“I think a lot of those feedyards have moved to the dairy-cross side,” he adds. “They have had to change the way they do business.”

Noting the broader economic implications of the border closure, 1.2 million fewer cattle for Texas represents “about two weeks” of impact nationwide, according to Cockrell.

“Winter and sterile flies is what we need now,” Cockrell summarizes.

Your Next Read: The Smell You’ll Never Forget: A Calf Infested with New World Screwworm

Aerial Gunning of Feral Cattle in New Mexico Set to Begin, USFS Violates Agreement

Wed, 22 Feb 2023 20:10:13 GMT

Feral cattle in New Mexico’s Gila National Forest are expected to come under crosshairs once again as the United States Forest Service (USFS) and the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) plan to decrease the area’s population via aerial gunning beginning Thursday, Feb. 23.

One year ago, the abrupt notice of the aerial gunning caused the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association (NMCGA) and others to file suit against the USFS. Despite their legal efforts, the mission continued, ultimately leading to 65 head of cattle killed during the 2022 operation.

Following the 2022 event, USFS agreed to “not rely on the same justification it had used for that action” and the organization agreed to provide 75 days in written notice of any future aerial slaughter operations, NMCGA stated in a recent press release.

“Unfortunately, after a year of abiding by our settlement agreement we are now back to square one,” says Loren Patterson, president of NMCGA in the release. “Throughout the past year, we offered real solutions to the Forest Service for the Gila estray problem. Those solutions would address the immediate issue, provide long-term resolution and would be humane.”

USFS and APHIS failed to provide notice of a plan to shoot cattle again, says the NMCGA, violating the agreement. Additionally, NMCGA notes USFS has no authority to shoot cattle, it’s violating its own regulations—which do not authorize shooting cattle—it’s violating the National Environmental Protection Act, and that the shooting operation constitutes animal cruelty under New Mexico law.

Taking legal action, NMCGA and others recently filed a Complaint and Application for Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction against USFS and APHIS in Federal District Court for New Mexico to stop the mission to shoot cattle in the Gila Wilderness from a flying helicopter, joined as plaintiff by Humane Farming Association.

NMCGA notes the USFS slaughter plan has drawn bi-partisan condemnation, while New Mexico citizens and former residents recognize the carcasses as a waste of food and a way of conditioning predators in the area to prey on livestock.

While the cattle are considered invasive, are threatening to the fish and wildlife habitats of many federally threatened and endangered species, as well as a public safety danger in the Gila National Forest area by USFS, the Western Landowners Alliance also voices its disproval of the aerial gunning routine.

“Everyone agrees the unauthorized cattle need to be removed from the vacant allotment. However, it is deeply disappointing that the agency chose to proceed with another round of aerial gunning, which last year left dead and dying livestock scattered in and along the river,” says Lesli Allison, WLA’s executive director, in a Western Ag Network article .

USFS issued a closure order for the area, beginning Feb. 20, and the aerial gunning is expected to last four days, from Feb. 23 through Feb. 26.

Read More from the 2022 Operation:
Feds Plan Aerial Gunning of Estray Cattle in New Mexico
Feral Cattle Aerial Gunning Continues As Court Denies Restraining Order