USDA confirmed Wednesday the detection of New World Screwworm in the United States for the first time in 60 years. The case was found in the umbilical cord of a three-week-old calf in La Pryor, TX, and it is the only case the USDA is tracking right now. A sample from the calf was flown to Ames, IA where the USDA’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory is located for confirmation.
USDA and Texas officials are taking immediate action to contain and eradicate NWS from the United States, following the strategies and actions outlined in the NWS Response Playbook. This includes:
- Forming a unified Incident Command Team with the Texas Animal Health Commission and deploying response personnel to the area
- Establishing a 20 km infested zone around the detection and implementing quarantines, movement controls, and surveillance in this area
- Expediting targeted release of sterile NWS flies by immediately deploying ground release chambers in the area, in addition to the 4 million sterile flies per week already being released aerially in the area
- Increasing trapping for NWS flies along the border and just outside of the dispersal area
- Implementing NWS surveillance and management strategies in wildlife
- Conducting targeted outreach in the local area.
Rollins stressed during Wednesday’s announcement:
“Screwworms do not infest meat,” Rollins said. “They do not infest fruits. They do not infest vegetables or other food sources. Our Food Safety and Inspection Service, FSIS, ensures that the nation’s commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg products are safe.”
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