New World Screwworm Threat Grows

A new bipartisan bill, the Protecting America’s Herd Act, aims to stop the deadly New World screwworm from spreading by funding USDA grants to train inspectors and deploy sterile fly technology. This parasite burrows into wounds, lays eggs, and threatens livestock—but isn’t contagious or food-safe. A key move: speeding up a sterile fly facility in Texas, where sterile males will mate with wild females to break the reproductive cycle. Officials are already tracking success via trap catches, while monitoring remains high after initial detection in New Mexico. No economic damage yet, but prevention is critical. Support the show:Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/39d0dce3dd83c1af