Standing at the historic screwworm research hub in Kerrville, Texas, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins didn’t sugarcoat the latest news: multiple New World screwworm (NWS) detections in South Texas cattle, a goat in Gillespie County, Texas, and a dog in New Mexico.
“These developments obviously represent a serious threat to our livestock and wildlife, but they haven’t caught us off guard,” Rollins says. “We have been tracking this pest for a long time, and we have fought before, and we will do so again.”
Calling NWS “an ever-evolving and dynamic situation,” Rollins details a rapid build‑out of infrastructure aimed at keeping the pest in check. At a press conference in the new Knipling-Bushland U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory along with Governor Greg Abbott, USDA officials, Texas A&M leadership and rancher representatives, she stresses this is not a replay of the 1950s and 1960s. Instead, she frames it as a high‑stakes test of a system that has been quietly preparing for more than a year.
“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,” she notes.
Today, alongside @GregAbbott_TX, Admiral Schmoyer, Under Secretary Hutchins, John Bellinger, and South Texas ranchers — we saw firsthand the cutting-edge research battling New World Screwworm every single day.
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) June 8, 2026
We toured the @USDA_ARS Knipling-Bushland Livestock Insects Research… pic.twitter.com/uvjyxgiTFU
To speed up the NWS confirmation process, Rollins reports the National Vet Laboratory team from Ames, Iowa, relocated to the Knipling-Bushland Lab late last week. The facility, which hosted a grand opening in late May, is named after influential and pioneering USDA researchers: Drs. Edward F. Knipling and Raymond C. Bushland. Knipling developed the theory that screwworms could be controlled using the sterile male technique, and Bushland successfully demonstrated the theory worked.
By this weekend, Abbott says, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, working with the Texas Animal Health Commission, will publish a NWS training module so more so ranchers and cattlemen can be certified to inspect their animals to ensure no interruptions to the continuity of business.
Representing Texas cattle producers, Texas Southwestern Cattle Raisers President Stephen Diebel shares five reassurances with attendees:
- No need to panic
- Meat is safe
- Treated cattle can still move
- The pest is highly treatable if caught early
- Eradication has been achieved before and will be achieved again
New Senior Advisor for NWS Preparedness John Bellinger — appointed just 48 hours before the press conference — underscores the economic logic of reporting: “If you report — we only have so many flies to drop — you’re going to get a priority on those flies. It’s to your economic benefit to tell us what’s going on.”
The goal is to keep the pest boxed in and pushed back before next summer’s fly season — a timeline Rollins acknowledges is ambitious but achievable.
Here are seven key takeaways:
1. Sterile fly deployment is already underway. Four million sterile flies were released within 24 hours of the first confirmed case. The goal is 500 million sterile flies per week — mirroring the scale that achieved eradication in the 1960s to 1980s.
2. A game-changing new technology. The “Novo Fly,” a novel sterile fly strain developed at the Kerrville lab, produces only male sterile flies, effectively doubling production output without adding new infrastructure. “If you have a plant that produces 100 million flies,” explains USDA Under Secretary Scott Hutchins, “50% of those are sterile females — they do us no good in this particular fight. By going to 100% sterile males, we’re able to instantly double our production.” On top of that, he reports the $100 million NWS Grand Challenge drew 226 proposals and will start rolling out innovations “week by week.”
3. The Army Corps of Engineers is treating this like a wartime priority. A dedicated colonel has been assigned to the Edinburg fly production facility build as his sole mission, modeled on emergency timelines used in Maui school reconstruction.
4. Disaster declaration. Abbott issued an updated disaster declaration Monday, activating the state emergency operations center 24/7, and authorizing all state personnel and university resources to be deployed. The Level II activation ensures a unified response among state agencies to protect ranchers, deer breeders and the broader agricultural economy.
5. Ranchers are the frontline. Officials repeatedly urged producers, hunters and pet owners to inspect animals daily and report immediately. Early reporting directly determines how quickly sterile flies are deployed to a location.
6. Cattle can still move. With inspection, treatment and documentation cattle movement can occur. Producers should not avoid reporting for fear of quarantine.
7. The U.S.-Mexico cattle import border remains closed. No timeline for reopening was offered, though Rollins notes the current outbreak is approximately 800 miles from the Arizona port.
“Bottom line is this: Texas is resilient,” Abbott summarizes. “Our producers, veterinarians and state officials are among the very best in the United States. It is critical to stay vigilant and stay informed. We prevented and eradicated this pest before. We can do it again.”
— This week we have boots on the ground in South Texas visiting with cattle producers, industry leaders and those who are leading the fight against NWS. Be sure to follow along on Drovers.com, AgDay, AgriTalk and our other Farm Journal social media channels and websites.
