Media Contact: TAHC Communications
\npublic_info@tahc.texas.gov
\n512.719.0750
\nFor Immediate Release
\nJune 19, 2025<\/p>\n
EDINBURG, TX \u2013 State Veterinarian, Dr. Lewis R. \u201cBud\u201d Dinges, DVM, commissioners and staff joined United Media Contact: TAHC Communications public_info@tahc.texas.gov 512.719.0750 For Immediate Release June 19, 2025 EDINBURG, TX \u2013 State Veterinarian, Dr. Lewis R. \u201cBud\u201d Dinges, DVM, commissioners and staff joined United States Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke L. Rollins, as she announced the launch of a sterile New World screwworm (NWS) fly dispersal facility in Hidalgo County, Texas. Secretary […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6697,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[53,27,14,1205],"tags":[901,1412,1410,220,349,219,1411],"class_list":["post-10489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-equinews","category-government","category-industry","category-texas-animal-health-commission","tag-hidalgo-county","tag-new-world-screwworms","tag-state-veterinarian","tag-tahc","tag-texas","tag-texas-animal-health-commission","tag-united-states-secretary-of-agriculture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10489"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10491,"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10489\/revisions\/10491"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6697"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ebarrelracing.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nStates Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke L. Rollins, as she announced the launch of a sterile New World
\nscrewworm (NWS) fly dispersal facility in Hidalgo County, Texas.
\nSecretary Rollins\u2019 robust plan and five-pronged strategy will amplify the preparedness and response
\ncapabilities the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC),
\nand response partners have tirelessly worked to develop to ready our state for the pest.
\n\u201cTAHC staff are prepared to respond to any NWS incursion if they make it to us,\u201d said Dr. Bud Dinges.
\n\u201cSecretary Rollins\u2019 active support to bolster our capabilities in Texas, to not only respond to but eradicate
\nNWS, is critical to efficiently and effectively protect the entire United States from this pest.\u201d
\nWhile NWS is currently being combatted in southern Mexico, the looming threat to Texas animal agriculture
\nis at the forefront of daily efforts with animal health partners. USDA and TAHC\u2019s established partnerships in
\npast animal health responses and active NWS preparedness sessions strengthen the proactive approach
\nneeded to address this issue.
\nKey facets of USDA\u2019s Five-Pronged Plan to Address New World Screwworms<\/a>
\n\u2022 Stop the Pest from Spreading in Mexico and Ensure we are Full Partners in Eradication
\n\u2022 Protect the U.S. Border at all Costs
\n\u2022 Maximize our Readiness
\n\u2022 Take the Fight to the Screwworm
\n\u2022 Innovate our Way to Eradication
\n\u201cWhile we are hoping for the best, we have been actively preparing for the worst for over a year,\u201d said Dr. Dinges.
\n\u201cTexans can be assured tireless preparedness planning and training are ongoing to mitigate the potential damage
\nand protect animal agriculture commodities from NWS. Secretary Rollins\u2019 commitment to this preparedness and
\nmitigation is evident with these announcements, and we are pleased to continue our collaboration with the
\nUSDA\u2019s efforts.\u201d
\nRead the USDA\u2019s press release here<\/a>. Learn more about NWS here<\/a>.
\n###
\nThe Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) was established in 1893 as the Livestock Sanitary Commission and charged with protecting
\nthe state\u2019s domestic animals \u201cfrom all contagious or infectious diseases of a malignant character.\u201d TAHC remains true to this charge while
\nevolving with the times to protect the health and marketability of all Texas livestock and poultry. Learn more about the TAHC by visiting
\nwww.tahc.texas.gov<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"