Texas Governor Issues Disaster Declaration To Aid New World Screwworm Prevention

On January 29, 2026, Texas Governor Greg Abbot issued a disaster declaration covering the entire state. According to a press release, this will “better equip the New World Screwworm Response Team to prevent the potential spread of the NWS fly into Texas and to better protect livestock and wildlife.”

“Although the New World screwworm fly is not yet present in Texas or the U.S., its northward spread from Mexico toward the U.S. southern border poses a serious threat to Texas’ livestock industry and wildlife,” said Governor Abbott in the release. “State law authorizes me to act to prevent a threat of infestation that could cause severe damage to Texas property, and I will not wait for such harm to reach our livestock and wildlife. With this statewide disaster declaration, the Texas NWS Response Team can fully utilize all state government prevention and response resources to prevent the re-emergence of this destructive parasite. Texas is prepared to fully eradicate this pest if need be.”

Texas Ag Commissioner Sid Miller responded to Governor Abbott’s declaration.

“I’m glad to see the urgency from the Governor’s office matching the seriousness of this threat. The Governor’s disaster declaration gives his task force greater authority, resources, and speed needed to confront the growing threat posed by the New World screwworm. This is a serious risk to our livestock industry and one that the Texas Department of Agriculture has been preparing for through our own heightened surveillance, coordination, and response planning,” Miller stated in a press release.

“The New World screwworm is inching closer to Texas each and every day, and we must be proactive in responding to this threat. This fight requires every available resource to be thrown at it without delay, and TDA will continue to work alongside our state and federal partners to protect our livestock, pets, wildlife, and Texas communities.”

Commissioner Miller has recently urged heightened surveillance in light of screwworm detections in northern Mexican states. Miller called on Texas producers, especially those in border regions, to remain alert and take proactive steps to protect their livestock.

“Now is the time for Texas producers to stay sharp and be prepared. The Texas Department of Agriculture, working alongside our state and federal partners, is fully engaged in enhanced surveillance, coordination, and response planning. But protecting Texas agriculture starts on the ranch, and we need producers to be our first line of defense,” Miller said in a statement.

“I urge all ranchers and owners of warm-blooded animals, from cattle to exotic game, to strengthen biosecurity practices now, even out of an abundance of caution. That means closely inspecting animals for wounds, watching for unusual behavior or signs of infestation, promptly treating injuries, and immediately reporting any suspected screwworm infestation.”

Texas has been cooperating with the USDA and working on the front lines of NWS prevention and detection.

In June of 2025, Governor Abbott directed the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Animal Health Commission to jointly establish a Texas New World Screwworm Response Team to lead Texas’ prevention and response efforts and “ensure that Texas remains informed, prepared, and aligned to prevent the re-emergence of this destructive parasite,” Gov. Abbott wrote. “Texas played a critical role in eradicating this pest from the United States in the 1960s and will do so again if the need arises.” 

In August, Texas partnered with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Secretary Brooke Rollins to create a new $750 million Domestic Sterile NWS Production Facility in Edinburg, Texas.

According to the USDA, planning is underway with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for construction of a domestic sterile fly production facility in Southern Texas, with a projected capacity of 300 million sterile flies per week. This will be the only U.S.-based sterile fly production facility and will work in tandem with facilities in Panama and Mexico to help eradicate the pest and protect American agriculture. Construction is underway on a sterile fly dispersal facility at Moore Air Force Base in Edinburg, TX. This $8.5 million facility, expected to be substantially complete by the end of 2025, will be capable of dispersing up to 100 million sterile flies per week.

As of January 29, USDA-APHIS and Mexico’s SENASICA report 14,601 total animal cases and 870 active animal cases of New World Screwworm in Mexico, most of which are concentrated in the southern part of the country. To date, no animal cases of NWS have been reported in the United States. One human case was reported in Maryland in August, 2025, in a patient who had traveled to El Salvador.

According to their website, USDA has “deployed over 100 NWS-specific traps and lures across high-risk areas of U.S. border States and is leveraging thousands of fruit fly/insect traps all along the Southern border. Tens of thousands of Cochliomyia flies from traps in all locations have been submitted to our National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) for identification, with no NWS detections to date.”

USDA also reports examining “all wildlife captured in high-risk counties in Texas for signs of NWS infestation. To date, more than 6,600 wild animals across 28 species have been examined, with no evidence of NWS found,” the website states.

“Early detection is our strongest weapon,” Commissioner Miller said. “Texas agriculture is tough and resilient—but resilience begins with readiness.”

For more information on the joint state and federal response visit http://www.screwworm.gov