US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins is launching an $8.5 million sterile New World screwworm fly dispersal facility in South Texas and announced a five-pronged plan to enhance the US Department of Agriculture's ability to detect, control and eliminate this pest.

NWS is a pest that causes serious and often deadly damage to livestock, wildlife, pets and in rare cases, humans. While NWS has been eradicated from the United States for decades, recent detections in Mexico as far north as Oaxaca and Veracruz, about 700 miles away from the US border, led to the immediate suspension of live cattle, horse and bison imports through US ports of entry along the southern border on May 11, 2025.

“The United States has defeated NWS before and we will do it again,” said Rollins. “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.”

Following the dispersal facility groundbreaking at Moore Air Base, Rollins will meet with APHIS’s cattle fever tick riders along the Rio Grande River. The secretary will see firsthand the role tick riders provide for identifying wildlife and preventing the spread of wild disease.

USDA’s five-pronged plan to address NWS

1. Stop the pest from spreading in Mexico

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 an 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 firsthand 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

USDA will support Mexico’s strategic trapping along the shared border and ensure USDA receives 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 state partners will intercept and treat stray and illegally introduced livestock.

3. Maximize 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 it has 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 we have for eradicating the pest, USDA will immediately begin building a sterile insect dispersal facility at Moore Air Base, 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 science, including possible plans to move forward with the design process of a domestic sterile fly production facility to compliment the new dispersal facility at Moore Air Base which has also been identified as the proposed location. 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 the way to eradication

USDA is pursuing innovative research to improve sterile insect technology, exploring development of better traps and lures and 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.

Additionally, to solicit input from stakeholders and to best inform the finalization of future plans, USDA will hold four public listening sessions to get 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 vs international sterile fly production, and other innovative ideas.

“Curbing the spread of the destructive New World screwworm is critical to protecting the Texas agriculture and livestock industry, and this new sterile fly distribution facility in Edinburg is a significant step in the right direction,” said Senator John Cornyn. “I will continue to work alongside Secretary Rollins and my colleagues in Congress to halt the spread of New World screwworm and increase our sterile fly production capacity through my STOP Screwworms Act.”

“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 National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Buck Wehrbein, a 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. It’s an honor to join her in Texas for this important event.”

Texas Cattle Feeders Association chairman-elect Laphe LaRoe said, “These additional resources, combined with robust implementation of surveillance, sampling, reporting and enhanced treatment protocols provide a strong foundation for the US to continue fighting the screwworm fly where it is today and ensure continued confidence in cattle and beef trade between the US and Mexico.”

“Today's announcement is pivotal in protecting the US cattle industry. Sterile flies are the only known way to stop the reproduction and continued expansion of New World screwworm, and it's assuring to see Secretary Rollins follow through her early commitments to increasing production of sterile flies domestically,” said Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association First Vice President Stephen Diebel.

Source: USDA