USDA will begin reopening the southern border to cattle imports from Mexico next month after determining conditions have improved in the fight against New World screwworm.
The Agriculture Department says the Douglas, Arizona, port of entry will reopen August 24 for cattle from Mexico’s Sonora state. Additional ports at Santa Teresa and Columbus, New Mexico, could reopen later if Mexico continues meeting animal health requirements. Every animal entering the U.S. will undergo a full USDA inspection for signs of New World screwworm.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says, “The closure of the Southern ports of entry for the last year has been a tough but necessary action to control the spread of NWS in Mexico and protect the American livestock industry.” USDA says reopening plans remain flexible and could be paused if the screwworm risk increases.
Meanwhile,
Cattle organizations are supporting USDA’s decision to begin a phased reopening of the southern border to live cattle imports from Mexico after progress in controlling New World Screwworm.
R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard issued the following statement: “We appreciate Secretary Rollins’ past commitment to protecting U.S. livestock and recognize the tremendous effort USDA personnel have undertaken in response to the New World screwworm outbreak. However, the secretary’s plan to begin a phased reopening of the border, purportedly with additional safeguards, is premature.
“New World screwworm remains active in Mexico, where a total of over 34,000 cases has so far been detected since the outset of the outbreak, including two cases in Chihuahua, which is one of the two Mexican states the USDA states are of lowest risk. The pest breached the U.S. border in early June, and 41 cases have so far been detected in Texas and one in New Mexico. In July, Mexico detected 62 new cases within about 100 miles of the U.S. border.
“We believe that USDA’s efforts to date have helped to mitigate the risk of the pest’s introduction and spread in the United States, but they have not yet eliminated that risk.
“The USDA continues ramping up efforts to produce enough male sterile flies to effectively eliminate the pest, but current production is far less than the up to 500 million sterile flies per week the USDA had stated would enable the agency to push the pest back to the Darién Gap containment zone.
“We remain concerned about reports indicating that illegal cattle trafficking is occurring between Central America and Mexico, as well as within Mexico. Illegally trafficked cattle likely bypass Mexico’s biosecurity measures and may contribute to the continued northward migration of the pest.
“Opening the border to livestock from Mexico will likely further incentivize the south-to-north movement of cattle within Mexico, which is known to facilitate the northward migration of the pest.
“Our position has not changed since Mexico’s initial announcement that the New World screwworm had entered its borders. Until Mexico can demonstrate it has fully eradicated the pest from within its borders, the USDA should maintain and strengthen all of its defenses against the pest, including keeping the border closed.”
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association CEO Colin Woodall says USDA’s aggressive response has “put us in a strong position to begin safely and gradually reopening our southern border to cattle shipments.”
The Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association also praised the phased approach, saying the temporary closure gave officials time to strengthen surveillance, expand sterile fly production, and improve response protocols. Both groups emphasized they will continue supporting strong safeguards to protect the U.S. cattle herd while allowing normal cattle commerce to resume.
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