ALMDA Provides A Reference Poster For NWS

The American Livestock Markets and Dealers Association (ALMDA) and Livestock Marketing Association of Texas (LMAT) have urged USDA Secretary Brooke L. Rollins to strengthen preparations for a potential New World Screwworm (NWS) outbreak in the United States.

While recognizing USDA’s efforts to slow the spread of NWS—including import restrictions, increased sterile fly production, and enhanced surveillance—the organizations identified several areas requiring additional preparation:

• Update response protocols to address large-scale, long-term outbreaks.

• Provide clear treatment guidance, including one comprehensive list of approved products.

• Reduce veterinary bottlenecks by allowing additional personnel to assist with inspections.

• Use practical quarantine and control zones and quickly communicate zone boundaries and status.

• Clarify Continuity of Business permits to keep livestock moving during an outbreak.

• Confirm financial assistance available to producers experiencing NWS-related losses.

• Expand surveillance while avoiding policies that discourage producers from reporting cases.

• Engage livestock markets as partners in inspections, treatment, surveillance, and disease response.

ALMDA and LMAT also emphasized lessons from previous U.S. NWS eradication efforts, noting that NWS differs significantly from highly contagious diseases such as Foot-and-Mouth Disease. Because NWS is treatable and does not pose a food-safety risk, they cautioned that overly restrictive movement and quarantine policies could create significant economic hardship without improving disease control.

The organizations are encouraging USDA to work closely with state animal health officials, veterinarians, producers, and livestock markets to develop a practical, scalable response plan.

To read the letter, Click Here