Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the latest confirmed case of New World Screwworm in Mexico is the closest detection yet to the United States. The pest was found in a goat in Coahuila, approximately 25 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. “This is our closest confirmed detection to date,” said Rollins, who added that federal officials are increasing communications efforts and monitoring the situation around the clock. The USDA plans twice-weekly media briefings and daily online updates after false reports recently circulated claiming NWS had reached within one mile of the U.S. border. The U.S. successfully slowed the northward movement of screwworm for many years. That changed in late 2024 when it was identified in southern Mexico, raising concerns for the United States. “Unsurprisingly, that security bulwark began to crumble during the previous administration,” said Rollins. “As cartels in South and Central America became entangled in the agricultural industry, they ramped up livestock trafficking with no concern for New World Screwworm infestation. The last administration refused to take action against those cartels and their partners.”
