PRATT (KAKE) — Kansas ranchers and agriculture officials are closely monitoring a flesh-eating pest after the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed the first non-isolated case of New World screwworm in the United States in 60 years.
The case was detected in a calf in Texas. While there are no confirmed cases in Kansas, officials say they have been preparing for the possibility as the pest moved north through Central America and Mexico in recent years.
New World screwworm is a fly that lays eggs in wounds on warm-blooded animals. The larvae hatch and feed on living tissue, causing painful infections that can threaten livestock health if left untreated.
Pratt rancher Steve Stratford said cattle producers have been watching the pest’s movement for years.
“We’ve known it was coming. It was creeping north of Mexico, It’s not a surprise that it’s here,” Stratford said.
There have been no confirmed cases in Kansas.
Federal officials have already begun containment efforts in Texas. According to agriculture experts, the USDA is expected to use sterile male flies to disrupt the pest’s reproduction cycle, a strategy that helped eradicate screwworm in the United States decades ago.
“It started in Central America, and they wouldn’t have the protocols to prevent it like we do. In the ‘60s, we eradicated it by turning loose sterile male flies, and that’s what the USDA will be trying to do now and help start getting the stop to them,” Stratford said.
While ranchers are concerned about the potential impact on livestock, Stratford emphasized that the issue does not affect the safety of beef products.
“What cattlemen and everybody in the industry wants to get ahead of false media stories being out there is that we’re in an animal health issue, not a meat safety issue, and so the meat in the stores and everything is going to be the same, 100% safe American beef that you’ve had forever,” he said. Stratford said producers will continue monitoring their cattle closely while federal and state officials work to prevent the pest from spreading farther north.
“The meat is going to be inspected, and the screwworm does not affect the meat,” Stratford said. “The USDA will have everything inspected, and the meat will be just like it’s been.”
Kansas agriculture officials say they will continue working with federal partners and monitoring the situation as cattle movement increases during the summer months.