EDINBURG, TEXAS — US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced a new five-prong plan to protect the US supply chain from the threat of New World screwworm (NWS), including the launch of an $8.5 million sterile NWS fly dispersal facility based in South Texas.

“The United States has defeated NWS before and we will do it again,” Rollins said. “We do not take lightly the threat NWS poses to our livestock industry, our economy and our food supply chain. The United States government will use all resources at its disposal to push back NWS, and today’s announcement of a domestic strategy to bolster our border defenses is just the beginning. We have the proven tools, strong domestic and international partnerships, and the grit needed to win this battle.”

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is gearing up for battle with the following five-prong approach:

1. Stop the pest from spreading in Mexico and ensure we are full partners in eradication.

• USDA’s recent $21 million expenditure went toward renovating an existing fruit fly production facility in Metapa, Mexico, which will provide an additional 60-100 million sterile flies a week to stop the spread, on top of the over 100 million already produced in Panama. This will result in at least 160 million flies per week.
• Over the last two weeks, USDA conducted a robust, in-person audit of Mexico’s animal health controls and will maintain close continual monitoring of these aspects moving forward and will make continuous improvements. These in-person visits have allowed a unique opportunity for APHIS to see first-hand the challenges and opportunities in Mexico toward combating NWS.
• USDA is working closely with Mexico to improve its surveillance and detection of NWS, which includes but is not limited to regularly providing traps, lures and technical expertise to Mexico.

2. Protect the US border at all costs.

• USDA will support Mexico’s strategic trapping along our shared border and ensure we receive regular reporting as an early warning intervention.
• USDA will escalate communications and public outreach along the US-Mexico border to create a “barrier zone of vigilance” and boost as close to real time as possible awareness of this pest.
• APHIS cattle fever tick riders in collaboration with US Customs & Border Protection and with state partners will intercept and treat stray and illegally introduced livestock.

3. Maximize our readiness.

• USDA will partner with state animal health officials to update and finalize emergency management plans and support federal, state and local responders in training on and practicing for a potential response.
• USDA will ensure the availability of sufficient NWS treatments and will work to remove any federal regulatory hurdles for their use.

 4. Take the fight to the screwworm.

• Because sterile NWS flies are one of the most important and proven tools for eradicating the pest, USDA will immediately begin building a sterile insect dispersal facility at Moore Air Base, Edinburg, Texas, set to be completed in 2025. This facility will have the capability to disperse sterile flies in Northern Mexico.
• USDA is exploring all options to eradicate NWS, which includes potential expenditures in new technologies and new science, including possible plans to move forward with the design process of a domestic sterile fly production facility to complement the new dispersal facility at Moore Air Base. The facility could boost domestic sterile fly production by up to 300 million flies per week and could complement current production that already exists in Panama and Mexico.

 5. Innovate our way to eradication.

• USDA is pursuing innovative research to improve sterile insect technology, exploring development of better traps and lures, exploring next generation NWS treatments, and assessing the potential use and practicality of additional strains or genetically modified versions of the pest as well as e-beam and other radiation technology for the production of sterile flies.
• USDA will strengthen partnerships with land-grant universities in border states such as Texas, Arizona and New Mexico to facilitate local training, trap deployment, surveillance validation and stakeholder outreach as an initial manner.

In addition to these steps, USDA will hold four public listening sessions to get stakeholder feedback on the following topics: sterile fly production technology, eradication tools and technologies aside from sterile fly production, the benefits and barriers including timelines and costs of enhanced domestic versus international sterile fly production, and other innovative ideas.

NWS is a pest that causes serious and often deadly damage to livestock, wildlife, pets and, in rare cases, humans.

For decades, the pest has been eradicated from the United States, but the country’s southern neighbor, Mexico, has recently reported NWS as close as 700 miles away from the US border.

As a precaution, on May 11, the United States suspended imports of live cattle, horse and bison through US ports of entry along the southern border.

At the height of the United States’ previous efforts to eradicate NWS in the 1960s, the nation released 400 to 500 million sterile flies per week, according to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA).

The group estimated that the only current sterile fly production facility, which is located in Panama, produces about 117 million flies per week, leaving a large gap from the upward of 300 million sterile flies per week that NCBA estimates is needed.

NCBA believes Moore Air Base is an ideal location for domestic sterile fly production. The base previously trained fighter pilots in WWII before serving as a dispersal location for screwworm fly eradication efforts in the 1960s and beyond. Additionally, the base’s proximity to the border is convenient for sterile flies to quickly be deployed to the areas most at risk in the United States.

“The only way to protect the American cattle herd from the devastating threat of New World screwworm is by having a sufficient supply of sterile flies to push this pest away from our border,” said Buck Wehrbein, NCBA president and Nebraska cattleman. “To accomplish that, we need a sterile fly production facility of our own in the United States.

“Moore Air Base was previously part of our nation’s screwworm eradication effort in the 1960s and now this base will be the cornerstone of our renewed fight against this parasite. NCBA and state affiliate partners, including the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association and Texas Cattle Feeders Association, have been pushing for a facility like this since the start of the year. We appreciate Secretary Rollins’ continued work to protect American agriculture from the New World screwworm.”