The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has identified 27 cases of New World blowfly in the United States since the 3rd of this month, when the first outbreak of the disease was found in Texas, after more than six decades. So far, all outbreaks have been identified in domestic animals, with 16 in cattle, 3 in goats, 7 in sheep, and 1 in a dog. The dog case was identified in the state of New Mexico, while the others are all concentrated in Texas – the last one was registered on Saturday (27). The New World blowfly is considered one of the most damaging pests to livestock, as its larvae feed on living tissue, causing serious wounds, reduced animal performance, and economic losses to the livestock sector. The blowfly had been eradicated from the United States in the 1960s, following a broad biological control program that confined the pest to Central America. In recent years, however, new outbreaks have been recorded in countries such as Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Honduras. In 2024, Mexico confirmed its first case of the disease in decades. Due to the disease's activity, the United States government suspended the import of live cattle from Mexico in May 2025, exacerbating the internal cattle supply crisis – the American cattle herd is at its lowest level in 75 years. Last November, the USDA inaugurated an aerial dispersal facility for sterile flies in Tampico, Mexico, to combat the disease; in February of this year, a new unit was implemented at Moore Air Force Base in Edinburgh, Texas. However, disease control is not 100% effective, given its spread across the United States.
This text was translated by machine from Brazilian Portuguese.