US shuts southern border to livestock imports to stop spread of deadly flies

The Trump administration is temporarily banning imports of cattle horses and bison through ports along the southern boundary because of the rapid northern spread of New World Screwworm NWS in Mexico U S Department of Agriculture USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins declared the suspension in an X post on Sunday Due to the threat of New World Screwworm I am announcing the suspension of live cattle horse bison imports through U S southern frontier ports of entry effective directly she wrote The last time this devastating pest invaded America it took years for our cattle industry to recover This cannot happen again The USDA commented in a press release the first event of NWS in Mexico was communicated to the U S in November PARTICULAR CATTLE INDUSTRY CHIEF WARNS FLESH-EATING FLY MENACES US HERS AS MEXICO YIELDS ON PEST FIGHTThe complication is when NWS fly maggots burrow into the flesh of living animals they can cause serious and often deadly damage to the animal the USDA announced The types of animals NWS maggots can infest include pets livestock wildlife birds and in rare cases humans According to the USDA NWS was of late detected in remote farms with minimal cattle movement as far north as about miles from the U S edge The U S and Mexico are working together to eradicate NWS before the deadly parasitic fly works its way to the southern frontier USDA THREATENS TO HALT MEXICAN BEEF IMPORTS OVER FLESH-EATING FLY CRISIS'Effective promptly the USDA commented the agency s Animal Plant Physical condition Inspection Function APHIS and U S Customs and Demarcation Protection are restricting the imports of live animal commodities originating from or transiting through Mexico The suspension will continue on a month-to-month basis until a notable window of containment is achieved the USDA reported Livestock as of now being held for entry into the U S will be processed normally the USDA added and will be inspected by a port veterinary health officer and treated to ensure they are not carrying NWS MAINE'S FEDERAL FUNDING FREEZE FROM TRUMP'S USDA REVERSED Secretary Berdegu and I have worked closely on the NWS response however it is my duty to take all actions within my control to protect the livestock industry in the United States from this devastating pest Rollins mentioned of the work she had done with her Mexican counterpart The protection of our animals and safety of our nation s food supply is a national defense 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 perimeter for livestock bargain This is not about politics or punishment of Mexico rather it is about food and animal safety The U S and Mexico are taking a three-pronged approach toward achieving the eradication of NWS which includes field surveillance with teaching and outreach that ensures prevention restoration and early detection The approach also includes controlling animal movement to limit the spread of NWS and sustained sterile insect dispersal CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPThis is not the first time the need to eradicate NWS has occurred In fact the Centers for Complaint Control and Prevention CDC announced NWS was eradicated in the U S in the s and in Mexico in the s However the eradication of the deadly worm cost billions of dollars and took decades