Where’s the beef?
Thanks to climate change, which the Trump Administration is actively promoting, and the Trump Administration defunding of USAID and a project dedicated to monitoring and containing New World screwworm in Central America, screwworm is back in the US after decades of successful containment.
What is screwworm?
“New World screwworm is a fly that lays its eggs in open wounds and body openings of warm-blooded animals. Infestations start when a female fly lays eggs on open wounds—wounds as small as a tick bite can attract a female fly to lay her eggs—or other parts of the body in live animals. Eggs hatch into maggots that feed on the living flesh for about 7 days before the larvae drop to the ground, burrow into the soil, and emerge as adult screwworm flies—starting the cycle again. Most infestations occur in animals, but they can occur in people.”
How does this affect beef prices?
“The United States eradicated screwworm in the 1960s through a massive sterile fly program, but outbreaks in Mexico and Central America have raised concerns about the parasite moving north again. The eradication was the result of multiple sterile fly programs across the south that cost roughly $42 million in the mid 1960s, the equivalent of about $452 million today. Despite the programs’ success, there have been stand-alone instances of screwworm since, including an isolated outbreak in Texas in 1976 that cost ranches an estimated $452 per head of cattle in today’s dollars, totaling $732 million. Those losses came from cattle death, weight loss and hide damage and the cost of surveillance and treatment. Evidence suggests screwworm outbreaks of the past did drive the price of beef higher, though not necessarily in a dramatic nationwide surge, because ranchers in the 1950s and 60s were working in a much stronger industry with higher herd numbers. The U.S. cattle herd had dropped to 86.2 million head of cattle and calves on U.S. farms as of Jan. 1, the lowest number of cattle in America since 1951. In May, the USDA said it predicts beef production will decline by 0.9 percent to 25.310 billion pounds in 2027 and said cattle prices are “projected to reach new highs as supplies remain limited.” The average price of ground beef has risen from $3.95 in December of 2020 to $6.89 in April, according to the Federal Reserve.”
Those trips to McDonalds, Burger King and Wendy’s are just gonna get more expensive. And the beef you do find probably will come from Argentina. Make South America Great Again, eh?
Screwworm crosses the border
What is screwworm?
“New World screwworm is a fly that lays its eggs in open wounds and body openings of warm-blooded animals. Infestations start when a female fly lays eggs on open wounds—wounds as small as a tick bite can attract a female fly to lay her eggs—or other parts of the body in live animals. Eggs hatch into maggots that feed on the living flesh for about 7 days before the larvae drop to the ground, burrow into the soil, and emerge as adult screwworm flies—starting the cycle again. Most infestations occur in animals, but they can occur in people.”
How does this affect beef prices?
“The United States eradicated screwworm in the 1960s through a massive sterile fly program, but outbreaks in Mexico and Central America have raised concerns about the parasite moving north again. The eradication was the result of multiple sterile fly programs across the south that cost roughly $42 million in the mid 1960s, the equivalent of about $452 million today. Despite the programs’ success, there have been stand-alone instances of screwworm since, including an isolated outbreak in Texas in 1976 that cost ranches an estimated $452 per head of cattle in today’s dollars, totaling $732 million. Those losses came from cattle death, weight loss and hide damage and the cost of surveillance and treatment. Evidence suggests screwworm outbreaks of the past did drive the price of beef higher, though not necessarily in a dramatic nationwide surge, because ranchers in the 1950s and 60s were working in a much stronger industry with higher herd numbers. The U.S. cattle herd had dropped to 86.2 million head of cattle and calves on U.S. farms as of Jan. 1, the lowest number of cattle in America since 1951. In May, the USDA said it predicts beef production will decline by 0.9 percent to 25.310 billion pounds in 2027 and said cattle prices are “projected to reach new highs as supplies remain limited.” The average price of ground beef has risen from $3.95 in December of 2020 to $6.89 in April, according to the Federal Reserve.”
Those trips to McDonalds, Burger King and Wendy’s are just gonna get more expensive. And the beef you do find probably will come from Argentina. Make South America Great Again, eh?
Screwworm crosses the border
Is there anything that Trump and his following of Republicans can’t screw up? As you said and this article agrees:
“Democrats have criticized the response so far as slow and delayed. They have pointed to Trump’s decision to eliminate the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which maintained a program to track screwworms in Central America.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller denounced the federal government for “a slow, bureaucratic, and incomplete response that allowed the pest to advance unchecked through Mexico and reach American soil”.
Miller called for federal officials to use insecticide traps, a method which they dismissed in a news conference on Thursday, saying they were ineffective at stopping screwworms, and used chemicals believed to cause cancer to humans and wildlife.”
US plans to fight flesh-eating screwworm outbreak with flies and dogs
I remember this issue from the sixties.
@Bill,
I have a friend from grad school days who worked for his career at the USDA in Fargo ND. One of their projects was screwworm control. With the Trump/DOGE cuts, America is vulnerable to agricultural pests. But Trump needs the money for his ballroom, and McDonalds can source the beef for his burgers from Argentina.
American farmers and ranchers, who are overwhelmingly Republican, would rather lose their livelihoods instead of admitting they were mistaken about the Trump GOP. Cognitive dissonance is a powerful motivator.
Joel:
Have Republicans ever revolted against their failed leaders such as Trump? Such would be a confession of screwing up then!
These people are not stupid. Somewhere in all of this, they must have a smidgen, a second, a sigh, an inkling, etc. of regret for their support of this presidential masquerader. History will not be kind to Trump. It should be more angry for those who voted for Trump. the 3 million who did not vote and the millions who voted for others, which includes Kennedy, and Mickey mouse. How ignorant can people be.