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Baja California Sur bans live cattle imports to prevent screwworm infestation Image: Especial.
🇲🇽 Mexico /Economy & Trade

Baja California Sur bans live cattle imports to prevent screwworm infestation

From El Universal · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Baja California Sur has banned the import of live cattle from anywhere in Mexico to protect itself from the spread of the screwworm pest.
  • The state, along with Baja California, is one of the last two regions in Mexico free of the infestation.
  • The measure includes reinforcing inspection points and considering a quarantine corral to ensure animal health.

Baja California Sur has implemented a complete ban on live cattle imports, including both large and small animals, from all parts of Mexico. This decisive measure aims to protect the state's status as one of the last two regions in the country, alongside Baja California, free from the destructive screwworm pest.

State officials confirmed the ban, emphasizing that "we are totally closed." The restriction comes as the pest has advanced towards northwestern Mexico, with Sonora recently confirming its first cases and Chihuahua registering outbreaks since July. Preventive actions in Baja California Sur began in 2024, involving a technical committee with the Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development and the National Service of Health, Safety, and Agri-food Quality.

We gave the instruction that the movement of cattle on the hoof from anywhere in the country is no longer permitted; we are totally closed.

— José Alfredo Bermúdez BeltránHead of the Secretariat of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Rural Development, announcing the ban.

The state is coordinating a strategic prevention plan that includes three lines of defense. The current phase focuses on total control of cattle movement and strict requirements for animal products and byproducts. Inspections of livestock entering Baja California Sur are also being intensified at key entry points, including Guerrero Negro, the Pichilingue port, and the international airports in La Paz, Los Cabos, and Loreto.

Officials highlighted the seriousness of the threat, noting that the fly causing the screwworm can affect warm-blooded animals, including wildlife and domestic pets. Future plans include constructing a quarantine corral in Guerrero Negro to inspect and apply sanitary measures to cattle from Baja California before they are moved elsewhere in the state. Despite the ban on live animals, the state will continue to allow the import of meat to ensure supply.

It is an extremely serious problem that requires constant attention.

— OfficialDescribing the threat of the screwworm fly.
About this summary

Originally published by El Universal in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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