The U.S. Department of Agriculture has confirmed that the New World Screwworm has officially reemerged in Texas for the first time since the 1960s in a revelation that could upend the American livestock industry.
NEW: USDA confirms second case of deadly flesh-eating screwworm in a Texas calf. pic.twitter.com/Baoliv9aGB
— Polymarket (@Polymarket) June 6, 2026
New World Screwworm is a devastating pest that can kill infected animals.
— Texas Parks & Wildlife (@TPWDnews) June 5, 2026
It's been detected in Zavala County, Texas.
PLEASE REPORT:
- Open sores or wounds with live maggots
- Animals shaking heads or acting irritated
- Foul, rotted flesh odor
👉 https://t.co/jFMGHcCQNo pic.twitter.com/zv5mokrwe4
Inbox: Texas Agriculture Commissioner @MillerForTexas urges President Trump to "immediately deploy the Screwworm Adult Suppression System" in response to the first suspected case of New World Screwworm in Texas. Says TDA would fast-track the system's use in the state. pic.twitter.com/0xQ8H7KIDd
— Hannah Norton (@hannahdnorton) June 3, 2026
The NWS is a flesh-eating parasite that burrows into living livestock, pets, wildlife, and even humans and birds. Gov. Greg Abbott, who is working in partnership with the Trump administration, has already declared a disaster across the state of Texas after two separate cases were confirmed in young calves near the southern border.
NEW: @GregAbbott_TX says the spread of New World screwworm into Texas poses an “imminent threat” of widespread damage to the state's livestock industry and economy.
— Brandon Waltens (@bwaltens) June 5, 2026
He's now declared a disaster for all 254 Texas counties. pic.twitter.com/gyftrFKrcP
Quarantine zones have been established in the surrounding area of the confirmed cases in hopes of containing the spread. Authorities are likewise dispersing millions of sterile flies each week in hopes of preventing their reproduction.
Initial projects had assumed that the NWS would make its way into the United States last year, but the USDA says that the Trump administration had managed to “buy time for this moment.” On June 1, confirmed cases of NWS were observed just one mile from the Texas border.
NEW: state Rep. Don McLaughlin says New World Screwworm within 1 mile of Texas border and urged state leaders to set up response modeled after Operation Lone Star.
— Jonathan Richie (@JRichieTX) June 1, 2026
Says the federal government is "failing to take seriously a threat that could devastate our livestock industry." pic.twitter.com/a4YcIuOjJF
Authorities have reiterated that the U.S. food supply is safe, as the NWS does not infest meats or other foods, but only living tissue. Still, if these cases were to spread and become an epidemic, the American livestock industry could implode. Upon learning of the news, Canadian authorities have already instituted a prohibition on importing Texas cattle for the next three weeks.
NWS UPDATE: The Canadian Food Inspection Agency implements temporary import restrictions on livestock from Texas after the first two cases of New World Screwworm in Zavala County have been confirmed.
— Jonathan Richie (@JRichieTX) June 6, 2026
Affects all animals in Texas within 21 days prior to border crossing. pic.twitter.com/O3Mu49BBnP
The U.S. has eradicated the pest once before, with suppression methods eliminating the presence of the NWS in 1966. Similar efforts were successful across Mexico and Central America, but the NWS remained present near the Panama-Colombian border until their latest resurgence.
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