Canada has temporarily banned cattle and horses from Texas after US officials confirmed cases of New World Screwworm in two calves.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said it would reject cows and horses that had been in Texas within 21 days of their arrival in Canada.
The move followed a US Department of Agriculture update on a second infected calf in Texas. The state leads US beef and cattle production.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster on Friday. He said the outbreak posed an imminent threat to the state’s agricultural industry.
“This is likely to spread over the course of the summer,” Abbott told reporters.
US officials announced the first Texas case in 60 years on Wednesday. They said larvae appeared in the umbilical area of a three-week-old calf in La Pryor, about 30 miles from the Mexico border.
Then, on Friday, the USDA confirmed a second case in a one-month-old calf in Zavala County. The site is about 5.6 miles from the first case. The USDA has set up a 20km control zone. It has also ordered quarantines, movement controls and surveillance.
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Canadian officials said the parasite is unlikely to spread widely in Canada’s colder climate. However, they urged farmers to check livestock wounds and foul-smelling cuts. Officials also advised residents to inspect pets after travel to Texas.
Canada imported 550,000 cattle from the United States in 2025, according to Canada’s agriculture department.
