Rollins, in Mexico City for meetings with officials including President Claudia Sheinbaum, told Reuters in an exclusive interview on Monday that President Donald Trump was “very focused” on reopening the border, which has been largely closed to Mexican livestock since May.

“We’re still not at the point where I am comfortable opening the ports, but I think every day that goes by we get a little bit closer,” Rollins said.

“I want to have every confidence that we have overturned every stone, that we understand every nuance, that we are deploying every tool in the toolkit,” she added.

Rollins, who declined to give a time frame for reopening the border, said she would speak to top U.S. officials about the issue on Wednesday and would have more conversations about screwworm with Trump.

Mexico’s agriculture ministry did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

Mexico taking it ‘very seriously’

Mexico has been working to contain the outbreak, which has spread northward from Central America, rattling the livestock and beef industries of both the U.S. and Mexico. Although U.S. officials say the pest has not yet breached the U.S. border, it threatens $1.8 billion in damage to Texas’ economy alone, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture estimate.

In September, Rollins criticized Mexico for failing to sufficiently implement measures to stop the screwworm’s spread, highlighting growing tensions between the two nations as the pest continues its advance north.

On Monday, though, after her meetings with Mexican officials, she said the efforts of both countries were “a completely different, more sophisticated, impressive operation,” than where they were in the spring.

Mexican officials “have taken it very seriously,” Rollins said, adding that she was “very impressed” with Sheinbaum.

“I believe sincerely, it is the most collaborative effort, perhaps in our lifetime, between the two different departments of agriculture.”

Parasitic flies

Rollins said there had been 11 cases of screwworm in Mexican states that border the U.S. in recent months, though they were all contained and treated.

Screwworms are parasitic flies whose females lay eggs in wounds. Their larvae burrow through living flesh, eventually killing their host if left untreated.

“The key is keeping the screwworm away from the southern border of America, and it’s gotten really close – too close – so now we just have to make sure we can push it back,” she added.

In Mexico’s southern state of Chiapas, which borders Guatemala, some ranchers have blamed the spread of the outbreak on the federal government’s failure to crack down on organized crime groups that traffic in stolen livestock, which enables them to tap a lucrative market and extort money along the way.

Illegal movement a “big issue”

Animals may be smuggled in from Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, or other Central American nations, often bearing counterfeit ear tags and forged documents.

Rollins said the illegal movement of cattle was a “big issue” that she wanted to dig into more, while noting that Mexico had put in new protections and checkpoints in place to better control for illicit livestock trade.

The border closure has added to the already tight cattle supply situation in the U.S., where beef prices have risen to records as herd sizes have declined to their lowest in decades at the same time consumer demand remains strong. About 250,000 head of cattle are waiting south of the U.S. border to enter, Rollins said.

The secretary said that rising beef prices, however, are a “non-factor” in considering whether to reopen the border.

“I think that we can never compromise the safety of the herd for the cost,” Rollins said, adding that doing so prematurely could lead to higher costs later on if the screwworm enters the U.S. and devastates the cattle industry.

The post U.S. not ready to lift Mexican cattle ban over screwworm, Agriculture Secretary Rollins says appeared first on Country Guide.

Berdegue said he spoke to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins in a video conference and that they had made advances but still did not have a date for reopening the U.S. border to Mexican cattle.

Why it matters: The U.S. ban on Mexican cattle imports has contricted an already tight cattle supply, contributing to record high prices.

“We have made considerable progress, and I am very optimistic,” he said in President Claudia Sheinbaum’s dailymorning press conference.

They agreed to test modular mobile plants in Mexico that could increase sterile fly production by up to 20 million additional flies each week if successful, Berdegue said, adding that this was the first case of the plants being used.

The U.S. government has kept its border mostly closed to Mexican cattle imports since May as the screwworm, which infests and can kill livestock if untreated, has moved from Central American into Mexico, rattling the livestock sectors of both countries.

Mexico is also working to open a sterile fly plant in southern Chiapas state in 2026, with the help of a $21 million investment by the U.S. It is expected to eventually produce 100 million flies weekly.

The technique involves breeding millions of flies, sterilizing them with radiation, and releasing them into the wild. When sterile males mate with wild females, no offspring are produced, and the population collapses over time.

“We will only be able to get it out of the country once we have the additional 100 million flies,” Berdegue said.

Sheinbaum had said last week that Berdegue would travel to the U.S. to meet with his counterparts in person with the aim of reaching an agreement on the reopening of the border.

The Mexican president announced on Monday that she and President Donald Trump agreed to extend a looming trade deadline for “a few more weeks” to discuss pending issues with Washington.

— Reporting by Cassandra Garrison and Natalia Siniawski

The post Mexico agriculture secretary says still no date for restarting cattle exports to U.S. appeared first on Country Guide.

Mexico recorded 6,703 cases of animals infested with New World screwworm as of September 13 since the start of the outbreak in November of last year. That was compared to 5,086 confirmed cases during the previous period, which ended August 17.

The latest report by sanitation agency Senasica, which was published on September 26 and seen by Reuters on Wednesday, shows the outbreak is becoming more concentrated as it moves northward through Mexico.

Of the total cases, 5,258 were confirmed in cattle.

The spread of screwworm as it moves closer to the U.S. border has sparked a diplomatic spat between the two trading partners as the U.S. casts blame on Mexico for not doing enough to contain the parasite, which infests and can kill livestock if untreated. The U.S. government has kept its border mostly closed to Mexican cattle imports since May.

There were five confirmed cases in Puebla state for the first time, which is about 80 miles (129 km) from capital Mexico City. There were also 744 cases in Oaxaca state, compared to 453 in the August report.

Veracruz state saw cases nearly double to 476 from 252 a month earlier. Chiapas state, which borders Guatemala, remains the area most affected by the outbreak, with 3,474 confirmed cases, up from 2,875 in August.

Mexico confirmed a case of screwworm in an animal in Nuevo Leon state on September 21, which borders the U.S., and said it was immediately treated to prevent a further outbreak.

In August, the U.S. confirmed its first human case in the United States of travel-associated screwworm from an outbreak-affected country, after Reuters exclusively reported on the case. The last major outbreak of screwworm in the U.S. was from 1972 to 1976 across six states.

The U.S. government shut down much of its operations on Wednesday after Congress and the White House were unable to reach a funding deal, leading to the furlough of about 42,000 USDA staff, roughly half the agriculture agency’s employees.

The agency is expected to use emergency funds to continue animal health programs related to diseases like bird flu and screwworm, according to the agency’s 2025 shutdown contingency plan.

The post Mexico sees 32 per cent jump in flesh-eating screwworm cases since August as cases move north appeared first on Country Guide.

The updated numbers, which have not been previously reported to the public, showed 649 currently active cases.

“That’s absolutely concerning,” said Neal Wilkins, CEO of conservation and cattle group East Foundation. “Having a 50 per cent increase in month-over-month numbers, particularly in the extreme heat, means they haven’t gotten it under control.”

The U.S. border has been closed to Mexican cattle since July due to screwworm concerns.

Screwworm moves north from Central America

The vast majority of cases were identified in cattle, though Mexican government data also showed infestations in dogs, horses and sheep.

Screwworms are parasites that eat warm-blooded animals alive and can devastate cattle herds and local wildlife.

Since an outbreak began in 2023, screwworms have advanced northward from Central America into Mexico and inched closer to the U.S. American ranchers and livestock industry players have closely monitored the fly’s progress northward, fearing an infestation that would cost Texas, the biggest U.S. cattle-producing state, about $1.8 billion, according to U.S. estimates.

Female screwworm flies lay hundreds of eggs in wounds on any warm-blooded animal. Once the eggs hatch, the larvae use their sharp, hooked mouths to burrow through living flesh — feeding, enlarging the wound and eventually killing their host if left untreated.

U.S. human case

On Sunday, Reuters reported the first human case in the United States of travel-associated New World screwworm from an outbreak-affected country. The case, investigated by the Maryland Department of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was confirmed by the CDC as New World screwworm on August 4, and involved a patient who returned from travel to El Salvador, HHS spokesman Andrew G. Nixon said in an email to Reuters.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is sending a team to Mexico in two weeks to verify that Mexico is following protocol to prevent screwworm’s northern spread, Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden said on Tuesday.

The post Mexico reports 53 per cent increase in flesh-eating screwworm cases since July appeared first on Country Guide.

The case, investigated by the Maryland Department of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was confirmed by the CDC as New World screwworm on August 4, and involved a patient who returned from travel to El Salvador, HHS spokesman Andrew G. Nixon said in an email to Reuters.

Earlier, Reuters reported that beef industry sources said last week that the CDC had confirmed a case of New World screwworm in a person in Maryland who had traveled to the United States from Guatemala.

Nixon did not address the discrepancy on the source of the human case.

“The risk to public health in the United States from this introduction is very low,” he said.

The U.S. government has not confirmed any cases in animals this year.

Threat to beef industry

The differing accounts from the U.S. government and industry sources on the human case are likely to further rattle an industry of cattle ranchers, beef producers and livestock traders already on high alert for potential U.S. infestations as screwworm has moved northward from Central America and southern Mexico.

The government’s confirmation of a screwworm case comes just over a week after U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins traveled to Texas to announce plans to build a sterile fly facility there as part of efforts to combat the pest.

The USDA has estimated a screwworm outbreak could cost the economy in Texas, the biggest U.S. cattle-producing state, about $1.8 billion in livestock deaths, labor costs and medication expenses.

An executive of the industry group Beef Alliance sent emails last week to about two dozen people in the livestock and beef sectors, informing them that the CDC had confirmed a human case of screwworm in Maryland in a person who had traveled to the U.S. from Guatemala, according to a source, who asked not to be identified, and who shared the contents of the emails with Reuters.

Beth Thompson, South Dakota’s state veterinarian, told Reuters on Sunday that she was notified of a human case in Maryland within the last week by a person with direct knowledge of it. CDC deferred questions to Maryland on a call with state animal health officials, Thompson said. “We found out via other routes and then had to go to CDC to tell us what was going on,” she said. “They weren’t forthcoming at all. They turned it back over to the state to confirm anything that had happened or what had been found in this traveler.”

Another source said that state veterinarians had learned about a human case in Maryland during a call last week with the CDC. A Maryland state government official also confirmed a case.

A spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Health did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

What are screwworms?

Screwworms are parasitic flies whose females lay eggs in wounds on any warm-blooded animal. Once the eggs hatch, hundreds of screwworm larvae use their sharp mouths to burrow through living flesh, eventually killing their host if left untreated.

The maggots’ feeding is similar to a screw being driven into wood, giving the pests their name.

Screwworms can be devastating in cattle and wildlife, and rarely infest humans, though an infestation in either an animal or a person can be fatal.

Treatment is onerous, and involves removing hundreds of larvae and thoroughly disinfecting wounds. But infestations are typically survivable if treated early enough.

The emails from the Beef Alliance executive said that due to patient privacy laws, there were no other details available about the positive human case of screwworm. The person was treated and prevention measures were implemented in the state, the email said.

A livestock economist at Texas A&M University was asked to prepare a report for Rollins on the impacts to industry of the border closure to Mexican cattle, according to the emails, a measure that has largely been in effect since November to prevent the arrival of screwworm to the United States.

The CDC was required to report the positive New World screwworm case to both Maryland health officials and the Maryland state veterinarian, one of the emails said, adding that the CDC also notified other agriculture stakeholders.

“We remain hopeful that, since awareness is currently limited to industry representatives and state veterinarians, the likelihood of a positive case being leaked is low, minimizing market impact,” the beef industry executive wrote.

A representative for the Beef Alliance did not respond to requests for comment.

Impact on beef and cattle futures

Chicage Mercantile Exchange feeder cattle futures fell sharply on Monday after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services confirmed the human screwworm case.

CME September feeder cattle contracts were down 2.75 cents at 359.925 cents per pound by 8:40 a.m. CDT after earlier falling as low as 354.525 cents per pound.

Livestock traders and beef producers have been on edge about the potential for cases in cattle as prices have already hit record highs because the U.S. cattle herd is at its smallest size in seven decades.

A human case and the lack of transparency around it could present a political challenge for Rollins. The USDA has set traps and sent mounted officers along the border, but it has faced criticism from some cattle producers and market analysts for not acting faster to pursue increased fly production.

Rollins first announced plans for a sterile fly facility at Moore Air Force Base in Edinburg, Texas – near where a production facility to combat screwworm operated during the last major outbreak 50 years ago – in June, saying that the facility would take two to three years to come online.A spokesperson for the USDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Mexico has also taken efforts to limit the spread of the pest, which can kill livestock within weeks if not treated. The Mexican government said in July that it started to build a $51 million sterile fly production facility in the country’s south.

The sole operating plant is in Panama City and can produce a maximum of 100 million sterile screwworm flies each week. The USDA has estimated that 500 million flies would need to be released weekly to push the fly back to the Darien Gap, the stretch of rainforest between Panama and Colombia.

Screwworms traveling north

Screwworms have been traveling north through Mexico from Central America since 2023. They are endemic in Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and countries in South America, according to the USDA.

Mexico reported a new case about 370 miles (595 km) south of the U.S. border in Ixhuatlan de Madero, Veracruz, in July. The USDA immediately ordered the closure of livestock trade through southern ports of entry, after previously halting imports in November and May.

The U.S. typically imports over a million cattle from Mexico a year to fatten in feedlots and process into beef.

Screwworms were eradicated from the United States in the 1960s when researchers began releasing massive numbers of sterilized male screwworm flies that mate with wild female screwworms to produce infertile eggs.

— Additional reporting by Heather Schlitz in Chicago and Jarrett Renshaw in Washington.

The post U.S. confirms nation’s first travel-associated human screwworm case connected to Central American outbreak appeared first on Country Guide.

Berdegue did not elaborate in his post on X, but said the deals would benefit both countries.

He later posted again on X saying he met with more than two dozen representatives and companies involved in distributing Mexican tomatoes in the U.S.

Washington has said it intends to withdraw from a bilateral agreement on Mexican tomato exports, citing its failure to protect domestic growers. A U.S. pullout would result in duties of nearly 20.91 per cent on most Mexican tomato exports as of July 14.

“They highlighted the adverse effects of the measure adopted by the U.S. government, which will make tomatoes more expensive for consumers,” Berdegue said about his meeting with executives.

Mexico’s government said in April it hoped to begin talks to renew the agreement, and has been working to smooth out other recent tensions including the handling of a damaging pest called New World screwworm after the U.S. threatened to limit cattle imports from Mexico.

Screwworm can infest livestock, wildlife and in rare cases, people. Maggots from screwworm flies burrow into the skin of living animals, causing serious and often fatal damage.

Frictions have also surfaced between the trading partners over a decades-old water sharing treaty under which Mexico has struggled to deliver on its obligations.

Last week, both governments announced an agreement that Mexico would increase its water shipments, which the U.S. has said are vital for Texas farmers.

The post Mexico agriculture minister says reached deals with US counterpart, met with tomato sector appeared first on Country Guide.

Tariffs on white corn imports from countries that do not have trade deals with Mexico will promote more domestic purchases, he argued, but without saying if the restrictions might push prices up.

Mexico, the birthplace of modern corn, is mostly self-sufficient in white corn, but does import massive quantities of yellow corn largely used for livestock.

The country is also embroiled in a trade dispute with the United States over President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s decree to limit the use of GM corn, particularly for human consumption, since nearly all the imports come from U.S. suppliers.

The U.S. and Canada requested trade dispute settlement consultations, arguing that Mexico’s policies are not science-based and will hurt the North American market.

If the new round of consultations fail to resolve disagreements within 75 days of the June 2 request, Washington can seek a dispute settlement panel to decide the case.

Lopez Obrador, who has questioned the impact of GM corn on human health, hailed the agreement’s assurance that only white, non-GM corn varieties would be used to make tortillas.

Lopez Obrador took particular exception with the traces of GM corn that have shown up in relatively small white corn imports from South Africa, one of the few alternative global white corn producers.

“We have the proof,” he told reporters at a press conference.

Mexico imports about $5 billion worth of U.S. corn, the vast majority being GM yellow corn, used to fatten chickens, cows and pigs plus other industrial uses.

The U.S. Trade Representative’s office declined to comment on the new plans, noting the announcements would not likely affect U.S.-Mexico corn trade.

Mexico’s economy ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

— Cassandra Garrison is a Reuters correspondent in Mexico.

The post Mexican president moves to prioritize domestic corn for tortillas appeared first on Country Guide.

The North American neighbours are inching closer to a full-blown trade dispute under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) on trade over Mexico’s policies to limit the use of GM corn, which it imports from the U.S.

If the consultations announced on Friday fail to resolve disagreements within 75 days, Washington can request a dispute settlement panel to decide the case.

Asked if Canada would take similar action to the U.S., a spokesperson for the trade ministry said Canada is “considering its next steps” and would be “guided by what is in the best interest of our farmers and the Canadian agriculture sector.”

The U.S. requested formal trade consultations in March over objections to Mexico’s plans to limit imports of GM corn and other agricultural biotechnology products. Those consultations took place, but failed to resolve the matter, the senior USTR officials said.

A spokesperson for Mexico’s economy ministry did not immediately comment on the move. The agriculture ministry declined to comment.

Earlier this week, Mexico’s agriculture minister expressed confidence in an interview that the dispute with the U.S. would not escalate to a dispute settlement panel.

The conflict comes amid other disagreements between the U.S. and Mexico, most notably over energy in which the U.S. has argued that Mexico’s nationalist policy prejudices foreign companies.

Despite changes to Mexico’s decree on GM corn, which it modified in February, the U.S. said the Latin American country’s policies are not based on science and appear inconsistent with its commitment under CUSMA.

The new decree eliminated the deadline to ban GM corn for animal feed and industrial use, by far the bulk of its US$5 billion worth of U.S. corn imports, but maintained a ban on GM corn used in dough or tortillas.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has said GM seeds can contaminate Mexico’s age-old native varieties and has questioned their impact on human health.

“They did make some modifications such as removing the specific timeline for banning biotech products, but the decree does call for a gradual substitution and eventual banning of biotech corn, and this part of the measure itself is not science-based,” said a senior USTR official.

The consultations will also address Mexico’s rejection of new biotech seeds for products like soybeans, cotton and canola, U.S. officials said.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement, “We fundamentally disagree with the position Mexico has taken on the issue of biotechnology, which has been proven to be safe for decades.”

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), which represents U.S. farmers, praised the U.S. move.

“Mexico’s actions, which are not based on sound science, have threatened the financial wellbeing of corn growers and our nation’s rural communities,” said NCGA President Tom Haag in a statement

— Reporting for Reuters by Cassandra Garrison; additonal reporting by Adriana Barrera in Mexico City and Ismail Shakil in Ottawa.

The post U.S. escalates dispute with Mexico over GM corn appeared first on Country Guide.

Corn, one of the crops exported out of Ukraine, ended flat at $5.96-1/2 a bushel while soybeans settled down 2-3/4 cents at $14.33-3/4 a bushel (all figures US$).

The U.S. Agriculture Department said in its weekly crop progress report that 49 per cent of the U.S. corn crop had been planted compared to 21 per cent a year earlier, while 35 per cent of soybeans were planted compared to 11 per cent this time last year.

The report also showed a slight improvement to winter wheat ratings, though 29 per cent in good and excellent condition was less than what analysts had expected.

“There’s lots of rhetoric out there about the hard red winter wheat crop in dire conditions, and whatever rain that materializes over the near term for Oklahoma and Kansas, it’s probably too little too late,” said Tom Fritz, a partner with EFG Group in Chicago.

Chicago Board of Trade most-active wheat lost 6-1/4 cents to settle at $6.54 a bushel, after hitting a two-week high of $6.69 a bushel earlier in the session.

Ukraine’s reconstruction ministry said Russia has effectively stopped the Black sea grain deal by refusing to register incoming vessels.

Moscow has threatened to quit the agreement, while Turkey and the United Nations are working to extend it.

Ukraine is also a wheat exporter.

“Russia is no longer inspecting incoming ships to the Ukrainian ports, so it pretty much shuts down exports coming out of Ukraine,” Fritz said.

The agricultural markets were looking ahead to a monthly U.S. crop production report due out on Friday.

— Reporting for Reuters by Cassandra Garrison in Mexico City and Michael Hogan in Hamburg; additional reporting by Naveen Thukral in Singapore.

The post U.S. grains: Chicago soy dips, corn flat as planting progresses appeared first on Country Guide.

Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations failed to reach an agreement to authorize any new vessels to carry out Black Sea grain exports on Friday, deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq said.

The most-active wheat and corn futures contracts made their first weekly gains in three weeks, coming off two-year and nine-month lows, respectively. Russia has said it will not extend the Black Sea pact beyond May 18 unless its list of demands over its food and fertilizer exports is met.

“The Russians are giving no indication that they are budging on the corridor extension,” said Charlie Sernatinger, head of grains for Marex Capital, in an analyst note.

The pace of grain shipments from Ukraine under the initiative has slowed as concerns grow over ships getting stuck if a deal is not renewed, according to sources and data.

The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) gained 15-1/4 cents to settle at $6.60-1/4 a bushel, after dipping this week to the lowest since April 2021.

Corn ended 7-1/2 cents higher at $5.96-1/2 a bushel. In the week, it rose 2.1 per cent after sinking to its lowest since July 25, 2022, on Wednesday.

Soybeans settled up 18-3/4 cents at $14.36-1/2 a bushel, after touching a low not seen since October earlier in the week.

Markets were looking ahead to a U.S. crop condition report on Monday, deficit negotiations in Washington and a monthly U.S. crop production report on May 12.

“We’ve got issues with lack of selling by the producer because it’s planting season, we’ve got the debt ceiling concern and we have a crop report that’s going to come out next Friday, expected to be negative,” said Don Roose, president of Iowa-based U.S. Commodities.

— Reporting for Reuters by Cassandra Garrison in Mexico City and Naveen Thukral in Singapore.

The post U.S. grains: Chicago grains end week up as no new Black Sea ships authorized appeared first on Country Guide.