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Mexico’s agriculture ministry announced Tuesday it will temporarily halt most imports of live animals from the United States after confirmed cases of New World screwworm were detected in Texas and New Mexico. The suspension covers cattle, horses, pigs, sheep, and goats, and is aimed at protecting livestock herds in northwestern Mexico, including Baja California and Baja California Sur.
SADER (Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural), Mexico’s agriculture ministry, said the ban was coordinated with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The screwworm cases in Texas were confirmed near Crystal City on June 4, with additional detections in New Mexico. The USDA had previously confirmed the parasite in a Texas calf.
Baja Peninsula Named Among Protected States
Mexico has recorded more than 28,200 screwworm cases since November 2024, mostly in southern and central states. The suspension specifically targets protection for Baja California, Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, and Sinaloa, where no cases have been detected so far.
The New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax) is a flesh-eating parasite whose larvae burrow into living tissue of warm-blooded animals. A joint U.S.-Mexico eradication campaign eliminated the pest from North America decades ago, but it re-emerged in southern Mexico in late 2024. The earlier U.S. response included a ban on Mexican cattle imports from May through July 2025.
What This Means for Baja Ranchers
Ranchers and farmers on the Baja peninsula who import U.S. breeding stock or feeder cattle should expect supply disruptions for the duration of the ban. No end date has been announced. The suspension applies to all live susceptible animals crossing the border into Mexico.
The situation represents a reversal of the cross-border livestock trade dynamic. Earlier in 2025, it was the U.S. blocking Mexican cattle over screwworm fears. Now, with cases spreading north into Texas and New Mexico, Mexico is closing the door in the other direction to keep its screwworm-free northern states clean.
Baja California’s cattle industry, while smaller than those in Sonora or Chihuahua, relies on proximity to the U.S. border for both exports and imports of livestock. Any prolonged disruption could raise local beef prices and limit access to improved breeding genetics.
The announcement was first reported by Ensenada.net, citing the SADER bulletin issued on Tuesday.