Alongside the Texas governor and ranchers, USDA officials, and posters that read ‘War on Screwworm,’ U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins updated farmers and citizens on the presence of New World screwworm (NWS) in the U.S. and what the Trump administration is doing to stop the spread, during a press conference on June 8.
After making its way through Mexico, the parasitic NWS — a fly that lays eggs in wounds of livestock and animals — was confirmed in a three-week-old calf on June 3. Two days after, a second case was confirmed in a calf, followed by one in a calf and the first case in a dog. A fifth case in a goat in Gillespie County, Texas, was confirmed during the press conference.
In response to NWS, the USDA declared a 20-kilometer infested zone around the cases and is imposing movement control and surveillance in these regions, Rollins shared at the press conference.
Texas also stepped up its NWS response with Governor Greg Abbot — who was at the press conference — activating the “full use of all state resources to respond to the New World Screwworm threat,” as shared in a press release.
Over the last year and a half, the Trump administration has been preparing for the re-emergence of NWS by releasing a playbook, launching screwworm.gov for resources, and investing in sterile fly capacity, speakers at the press conference shared.
However, the Trump administration faced criticism over slashes to a program to monitor screwworm that came from Elon Musk’s led Department of Government Efficacy.
“Every model showed that the New World screwworm would be here in Texas by early last summer, so we bought ourselves an additional year to prepare for this moment,” Rollins pointed out.
During the press conference, Rollins also addressed concerns about the safety of the U.S. food supply, affirming her previous stances that the screwworm is treatable and that the food system is safe.
“I also want to continue to ensure this does not affect the food supply system. This is not a virus. It is not a disease. It is a pest, and so we obviously are treating it as such. But the food supply system remains intact and couldn’t be safer or better than any other food supply system in the world,” she emphasized.
Boosting sterile fly with NovoFly technology
Speakers at the press conference encouraged ranchers to speak up if they see signs of NWS and also highlighted the importance of sterile fly technology, which was instrumental in eradicating the pest from the US in the past.
“Prevention requires the release of millions of sterile flies in targeted regions. The USDA is now importing and dispersing those flies in South Texas and will recalibrate to deploy those sterile flies as needed and where needed. The USDA is also constructing that new sterile screwworm production facility in Edinburgh, which we need to get up and running as quickly as possible,” Abbott said at the conference.
Advancements in fly genomics are boosting the production of sterile male flies, which are crucial to shrinking the NWS population. The EPA is reviewing a genetically modified strain of flies called NovoFly, which only produces males and kills off females at the embryo stage.
“If you have a plant that produces 100 million flies, as we do today, 50% of those are sterile females. They do us no good in this particular fight. So, by going to 100% male sterile males, we’re able to instantly double our production, so it’s going to give us a tremendous edge,” Hutchins elaborated.
The USDA is looking for tech to speed up the eradication of the pest and expand sterile fly technology through the New World Screwworm Grand Challenge, which is committing up to $100 million for various solutions. The agency has reviewed over 226 applications thus far, Rollins noted.
Can import restrictions be enough to stop NWS?
Amid the re-emergence of NWS, states, like Florida, Louisiana, Montana, and Kentucky, and Canada restrict the import of animals from the infected zone to halt the spread of NWS and protect citizens.
The State Veterinarian of Louisiana issued an order restricting the interstate movement of animals, requiring animals that come from an NWS-infested zone to have an Official Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (OCVI), according to a government press release. Florida and Kentucky launched similar plans requiring an OCVI from animals.
On June 5, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency implemented temporary import restrictions on livestock coming from Texas and will work with U.S. official and adjust when needed, the agency shared in a statement.
