by USDA and NCBA

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins May 11 announced the suspension of live cattle, horse and bison imports through U.S. ports of entry along the southern border, effective immediately, due to the continued and rapid northward spread of New World screwworm (NWS) in Mexico. NWS has been recently detected in remote farms with minimal cattle movement as far north as Oaxaca and Veracruz, about 700 miles away from the U.S. border.

The United States and Mexico continue efforts to interdict and eradicate NWS in Mexico and work in good faith. However, despite these efforts and the economic effect on both countries due to this action, there has been unacceptable northward advancement of NWS and additional action must be taken to slow the northern progression of this deadly parasitic fly. As such, effective immediately, the USDA Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) in conjunction with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will restrict the importation of live animal commodities originating from, or transiting Mexico. This import suspension will persist on a month-by-month basis, until a significant window of containment is achieved.

USDA will continue constant collaboration with Mexico, including a review of latest data and metrics in two weeks. USDA teams have been in daily communication discussing how to build on the good work that has been accomplished to improve the strategy toward eradication. Any livestock currently in holding for entry into the United States will be processed normally, this includes an APHIS port Veterinary Medical Officer inspection exam and treatment to ensure they are not carrying NWS.

This import suspension will persist on a month-by-month basis, until a significant window of containment is achieved.

“Secretary Berdegué and I have worked closely on the NWS response; however, it is my duty to take all steps within my control to protect the livestock industry in the United States from this devastating pest,” said Secretary Rollins. “The protection of our animals and safety of our nation’s food supply is a national security issue of the utmost importance. Once we see increased surveillance and eradication efforts, and the positive results of those actions, we remain committed to opening the border for livestock trade. This is not about politics or punishment of Mexico; rather, it is about food and animal safety.”

Effective eradication, which remains the shared goal and best interest of both the United States and Mexico, requires a three-pronged approach, said Rollins: robust active field surveillance with education and outreach to ensure prevention, treatment and early detection; controlled animal movement to limit spread; and sustained sterile insect dispersal.

Suspending livestock transport through southern ports of entry will assist in the effort to limit northbound transport of NWS through livestock commerce, and will allow the United States to reassess whether current mitigation standards remain sufficient. It is important to note the northward spread of NWS is possible through natural wildlife movements, including wildlife that transit the border region without impediment.

USDA is taking all possible actions to monitor for, and limit, the northward movement of NWS, including the utilization of the USDA Tick Riders to monitor livestock and wildlife along the southern border region, between the ports of entry, for the presence of NWS.

The United States previously and successfully led the eradication of NWS in the United States and Mexico; however, this cost billions of dollars and took decades, shared Rollins. These recent detections in Mexico show that this dangerous pest is back and remains a serious threat to the health of our animals, our food supply and the security of our country.

“This is not about politics or punishment of Mexico; rather, it is about food and animal safety.” — Brooke Rollins

“For months, NCBA and affiliated state cattle industry associations have been working with USDA officials urging their counterparts in Central America to take stronger action to stop the spread of New World screwworm,” said National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) CEO Colin Woodall.

Woodall said the closure was avoidable.

“U.S. government officials, NCBA and leaders from affiliated state cattle industry associations have been sounding the alarm for months. Unfortunately, the Mexican government created unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles, which rendered prevention efforts ineffective and allowed screwworm cases to spread unchecked beyond control points in southern Mexico,” said Woodall. “The Mexican government’s failure to knock down senseless obstacles has left America with no alternative but a closure of the U.S. border until the outbreak is verifiably stopped and the flies pushed back south of Panama’s Darien Gap.”