Mexico’s President Criticizes U.S. Cattle Import Suspension Amid Health Concerns
Mexico City — President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed her discontent on Monday regarding the Trump administration’s decision to halt imports of Mexican beef cattle for 15 days. This decision arose after the detection of screwworm in some shipments, which Sheinbaum labeled as “unfair.”
In recent months, Sheinbaum has been working hard to counter threats of tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump. She expressed hope that the suspension would not further harm Mexico’s economy. “We do not agree with this measure,” she stated during her morning press conference. “The Mexican government has been proactive since we were first alerted to the screwworm issue.”
The U.S. imposed restrictions on Mexican cattle shipments after identifying the pest last November. Though the ban was lifted in February after new protocols were established to inspect the animals, officials have noted an "unacceptable northward advancement" of the screwworm, as per a statement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins emphasized the seriousness of the situation, recalling that a previous screwworm invasion had caused a 30-year recovery period for the U.S. livestock industry. Rollins stated, “This can never happen again.”
Screwworms, the larvae of the Cochliomyia hominivorax fly, pose a significant threat as they can invade the tissues of warm-blooded animals, including humans. Recently, Mexico’s Health Ministry issued an epidemiological warning following the confirmation of the first human case of screwworm myiasis in a 77-year-old woman from Chiapas state.
