1. USDA Begins Hiring for Nation's Largest Facility to Combat New World Screwworm
USDA Office of Communications Bulletin
November 10, 2026
Washington, D.C.?- U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will begin hiring for 228 positions at the New World Screwworm (NWS) Sterile Fly Production Facility in Edinburg, Texas, starting this month. Those interested in the positions can apply online starting today at USAJobs.gov or can attend a hiring event in McAllen, Texas, from Nov. 17-19, 2026.
"Protecting U.S. livestock and wildlife from New World Screwworm is a national security priority, and this new facility will drastically boost the availability of sterile flies - our most successful offensive capability to drive these serious pests away from our border," said Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins. "The people filling these vital positions will serve at the front lines in our battle against this serious pest and help ensure that we again eradicate it from our country. Thanks to the speed of the Trump Administration and the support of the Department of War and the Army Corps of Engineers, this facility will open in record speed, nearly five years ahead of schedule."
"The men and women of USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service are vital to defending our nation against invasive pests and diseases that could devastate the agricultural industry, and we need skilled professionals dedicated to this mission on our front lines," said Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Dudley Hoskins. "This hiring event gives people who may never have considered working in government an opportunity to join a mission worthy of the challenging work."
The hiring event will be held at the Embassy Suites by Hilton McAllen Convention Center, 800 Convention Center Blvd. in McAllen, Texas; Nov. 17-19, 2026; from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. CST each day. Hiring managers will be on site and conducting interviews during the event. For more information about this event, please visit https://www.aphis.usda.gov/careers/job-openings/now-hiring-texas-moore-air-base.
Full text: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDAOC/bulletins/43250da
2. Case of avian influenza detected in Worcester County
By Sophia Peters
WMDT.com
November 11, 2026
WORCESTER COUNTY, Md. - The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) has announced the detection highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Worcester County.
Officials say, following routine surveillance, poultry at the affected commercial broiler operation preliminarily tested positive for the virus, also known as "bird flu". As a result, the affected property has been placed under quarantine. The flock is being depopulated to prevent further spread of the disease, and birds from the affected flock will not enter the food supply chain.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Veterinary Services Laboratories is currently testing to confirm the disease, with final results expected in the coming days.
Full text: https://www.wmdt.com/2026/11/case-of-avian-influenza-detected-in-worcester-county/
3. CWD found at Taylor County farm leads to new multi-county deer baiting and feeding ban [WI]
By Terry Bell
WQOW.com
November 11, 2026
MADISON, Wis. (WQOW) - A farm-raised deer on a deer farm in Taylor County tested positive for chronic wasting disease.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources was notified by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection about the positive result. The detection is within 10 miles of the border of both Chippewa and Clark counties.
State law requires the DNR to enact a three-year baiting and feeding ban in counties where CWD has been detected and a two-year ban in adjoining counties within 10 miles of a CWD detection. If additional CWD cases are found during the lifetime of a baiting and feeding ban, the ban will renew for an additional two or three years.
Taylor County will begin a three-year baiting and feeding ban on Dec. 1. Chippewa County will renew the baiting and feeding ban for another two years from Dec. 1.
4. Impact of maternal diet on offspring studied in cattle and sheep
Team has found overfeeding and restricted feeding during gestation both lead to metabolic dysregulation in offspring.
By Anna Zarra Aldrich, College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources, University of Connecticut
Beef Magazine
November 10, 2026
Researchers in the University of Connecticut's College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR) are part of an interdisciplinary team that won agInnovation's 2026 Excellence in Multistate Research Award for work enhancing the reproductive performance of cattle and sheep.
According to its website, agInnovation is "the national voice of the State Agricultural Experiment Stations, representing the collective strength of research scientists and institutions at land-grant universities."
Over its 56-year legacy, Hatch Multistate project W4112, Reproductive Performance in Domestic Ruminants, has made discoveries and data-driven solutions that have reshaped industry practices, delivering measurable gains in productivity and resilience.
Kristen Govoni, CAHNR associate dean of academic programs, director of the Ratcliffe Hicks School of Agriculture and professor of animal science, leads UConn's contribution to the project. Professors Sarah Reed and Steve Zinn in animal science and Rachel O'Neill, Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, are also collaborating on work related to this grant.
5. USDA cuts red meat, poultry outlook as beef, broiler output slips
Persistent weakness in the pork cutout and increased production have reduced hog price forecasts for the remainder of 2026 and the first half of 2027.
By Ann Hess, Content Producer
National Hog Farmer
November 11, 2026
The USDA has reduced its 2026 production forecast for red meat and poultry to 107.807 billion pounds, as lower beef and broiler production is expected to offset gains in the pork and turkey markets. According to the November World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report released Tuesday, 2026 pork production has been raised by 35 million pounds to 27.656 billion pounds, based on a larger-than-expected supply of market-ready hogs in Q4.
A slower pace of fed cattle marketings, combined with lighter dressed weights, has pushed 2026 beef production down to 24.762 billion pounds, 40 million pounds lower than last month's report.
On the poultry side, broiler production dipped 245 million pounds to 49.475 billion pounds, based on current slaughter and placement data. Heavier weights and a higher share of toms being slaughtered than seasonally typical brought turkey production up 49 million pounds to 5.183 billion pounds. Egg production rose slightly to 9.171 billion pounds, due to growth in the layer flock.
6. UW-River Falls scientist researches humane cattle stunning with grants from USDA, Dairy Innovation Hub [WI]
Baldwin Bulletin
November 11, 2026
Karly Anderson, a scientist and trainer with the University of Wisconsin-River Falls Humane Handling Institute (HHI), is leading a new $300,000 research project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) through its National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The project is also supported by a faculty research fellowship through Wisconsin's Dairy Innovation Hub (DIH).
Working with co-investigator Kurt Vogel, director of HHI, Anderson will study the effectiveness of captive-bolt devices and recommended bolt placements used to stun cattle in meat processing plants. The research is intended to replace uncertainty with objective, science-based recommendations that can be used by slaughter establishments, livestock producers and others responsible for humane stunning or euthanasia of cattle.
The project has two major components. One will use an ultra high-speed camera to precisely measure how far and how fast the bolts in commercially available captive-bolt devices travel. Though penetrative captive-bolt devices are the primary tool used to stun cattle in the United States, there is currently little independent information about exactly how far the bolts travel in the many different devices. The speed of the bolts makes the distance hard to measure.