Sterile Fly Facility Breaks Ground in Fight Against New World Screwworm

Sterile fly facility breaks ground in fight against New World screwworm

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, came to the South Texas border for the groundbreaking Friday of a multi-million dollar facility being built to eradicate the New World screwworm.

USDA, US Army Break Ground on Texas Facility to Combat Flesh-Eating Parasite Spread

U.S. officials broke ground for a New World Screwworm (NWS) sterile fly production facility in Texas to combat the flesh-eating parasites, which have spread across Mexico and pose a significant threat to America’s livestock, wildlife, and public health. Located in Moore Air Base, Edinburg, the facility “is being built with an aggressive timeline designed to quickly expand the nation’s sterile fly production capacity,” the U.S. Department of Agri…

USDA, Army break ground on NWS sterile fly production facility

By Julie Tomascik Editor A decades-old tool to fight a devastating pest is getting a new home in the Rio Grande Valley. Federal and state officials held a groundbreaking ceremony April 17 at Moore Air Base in Edinburg for a domestic sterile fly production facility that will help strengthen the nation’s defenses against the New World screwworm (NWS). The facility, a partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Army C…

USDA Breaks Ground on Domestic Sterile Fly Production Facility

New World screwworm (NWS, Cochliomyia hominivorax) is a devastating pest. When NWS fly larvae (maggots) burrow into the flesh of a living animal, they cause serious, often deadly damage to the animal. NWS can infest livestock, pets, wildlife, occasionally birds, and in rare cases, people.Courtesy of USDA/APHIS The U.S. Department of Agriculture, in conjunction with the Army Corps of Engineers, held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new domestic st…

USDA Holds Groundbreaking on Sterile Fly Facility in Texas

Leaders from the USDA and the Army Corps of Engineers held a groundbreaking for the new sterile fly production facility at Moore Air Base in Texas. The new plant is a cornerstone in the USDA’s plan to combat the advancing New World Screwworm in Mexico. Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins said this is an important event for U.S. agriculture. “I have, over the last year, as we have built up our abilities, our capacity, our battle, our partnerships have be…

This potentially deadly, flesh-eating parasite is getting closer to the US

A potentially deadly parasite that can infect livestock, pets and humans is less than 100 miles away from the Texas border and is inching closer to the U.S.