Mexico, US launch plant producing flies to fight cattle parasite

On June 27, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins officially inaugurated a joint sterile fly production plant in southern Mexico. This $50 million-plus cross-border facility is a critical step in halting the rapid northward advance of the New World screwworm (NWS), a highly destructive, flesh-eating parasite that threatens livestock, wildlife, and the multi-billion-dollar North American cattle industry.

The newly launched plant relies on a proven scientific method called the Sterile Insect Technique. They are supposed to break the reproductive cycle of the so-called the NWS fly. Once running at full capacity, this new plant is expected to produce up to 100 million sterile flies per week, effectively doubling the current regional supply produced by an existing plant in Panama.