Cattle, bison, horse imports from Mexico to restart as USDA lifts ban

The United States Department of Agriculture has announced reopenings for cattle, bison and equines from Mexico beginning as early as July 7.

In collaboration with USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and their counterparts in Mexico, the reopenings will begin in phases starting with the southern port of Douglas, Arizona. In May, USDA suspended imports of live cattle, bison and equines from Mexico into the United States because of the continued and northward spread of the new world screwworm.

During the weeks of June 2 and June 16, USDA said that teams of APHIS experts conducted onsite assessments of Mexico’s screwworm response efforts to reassess the risk of screwworm incursions to the United States posed by the importation of Mexican cattle across the southern border.

“At USDA, we are focused on fighting the new world screwworm’s advancement in Mexico. We have made good progress with our counterparts in Mexico to increase vital pest surveillance efforts and have boosted sterile fly dispersal efforts," said USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins.

USDA intends to reopen additional ports in New Mexico and in Texas, over the coming weeks. USDA officials added that additional port openings will be based on APHIS’ continuous reevaluation of the number of cases and potential northward movement of the new world screwworm, Mexico’s continued efforts to curb illegal animal movements, and implementation of inspection and treatment protocols.