US Puts US$21 Million Toward Mexico's Screwworm Fight

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will invest US$21 million in Mexico to combat the spread of the New World Screwworm (NWS). The resources will be used to enhance the production capacity of sterile flies in Mexico. 

The announcement was made today by US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins following a call with Mexico's Minister of Agriculture, Julio Berdegue, to discuss ongoing joint efforts to contain the pest. Rollins said the US$21 million investment is aimed at renovating a facility in Metapa, Chiapas, to increase the production of sterile flies used to combat NWS.

When operational, the renovated facility is expected to produce 60 to 100 million additional sterile NWS flies weekly, which will be used to push the screwworm population further south and away from the US border. “Our partnership with Mexico is crucial in making this effort a success. We are continuing to work closely with Mexico to push NWS away from the United States and out of Mexico. The investment I am announcing today is one of many efforts my team is making around the clock to protect our animals, our farm economy, and the security of our nation’s food supply, ” Rollins said.

Despite these efforts, USDA stressed that current restrictions on live animal imports from Mexico remain in place, with the agency continuing to evaluate the suspension every 30 days.

The investment is intended to double the capacity of the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) program, as all sterile flies are produced at a facility in Panama, which is operating at full capacity, releasing up to 100 million flies per week.

In addition to the new facility, the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and relevant Mexican ministries continue to hold technical meetings on the NWS response. A Mexican delegation visited Washington, D.C. last week to discuss these efforts, and an APHIS technical team will visit Mexico in the coming weeks to assess the on-the-ground situation and continue work on surveillance and animal movement controls.