# Inside the program that breeds billions of screwworm flies each year | National Geographic

> A joint US-Panama facility in Panama breeds and sterilizes roughly 20 million New World screwworm flies a week. The sterile flies are released over the Darién Gap to stop the pest moving north toward livestock in North America.

- Date: 2019-12-11 · published 2019-12-11T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: disease · region Panama · magnitude low
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/55548-inside-the-program-that-breeds-billions-of-screwworm-flies-each-year-national
- Commodities: [Live Cattle](https://feedsoft.ai/c/LCATTLE.md)

## Why it matters

This barrier protects the US cattle herd from a parasitic disease that would reduce livestock supply and trade if it spread north. Its continued operation supports stable cattle supply.

## Read by commodity

- LCATTLE: neutral

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LCATTLE | 2017-12-11 | [Contact - The Lethbridge Herald - News and Sports from around Lethbridge - USDA Unveils $100 Million 'Grand Challenge' to Thwart Flesh-Eating Screwworm as Threat Reaches U.S. Border](https://feedsoft.ai/events/67441-contact-the-lethbridge-herald-news-and-sports-from-around-lethbridge-usda.md) | +0.1% | +2.5% |
| LCATTLE | 2019-03-06 | [Boston Herald - Boston news, sports, politics, opinion, entertainment, weather and obituaries - USDA Unveils $100 Million 'Grand Challenge' to Thwart Flesh-Eating Screwworm as Threat Reaches U.S. Border](https://feedsoft.ai/events/60056-boston-herald-boston-news-sports-politics-opinion-entertainment-weather-and.md) | -0.9% | -1.7% |
| LCATTLE | 2019-08-15 | [Beef herd health-it extends far beyond our airports \| The National Tribune](https://feedsoft.ai/events/57522-beef-herd-health-it-extends-far-beyond-our-airports-the-national-tribune.md) | -1.4% | -5.7% |
| LCATTLE | 2016-12-12 | [IAEA Hosts Latin American, Caribbean and U.S. Experts on Fight Against Screwworm Pest \| International Atomic Energy Agency](https://feedsoft.ai/events/73407-iaea-hosts-latin-american-caribbean-and-u-s-experts-on-fight-against-screwworm.md) | -0.4% | +4.3% |
| LCATTLE | 2021-07-19 | [Russia and Thailand issue temporary bans on imports of live cattle, buffalo and their products \| The National Tribune](https://feedsoft.ai/events/46015-russia-and-thailand-issue-temporary-bans-on-imports-of-live-cattle-buffalo-and.md) | +0.8% | +1.8% |

## Sources

- nationalgeographic.com: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/north-american-screwworm-barrier

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.