1. Secretary Rollins Visits Douglas Port of Entry, Announces $25 Million Commitment for New Arizona Sterile Fly Dispersal Facility
USDA Office of Communications Bulletin
July 29, 2026
(Washington, D.C., July 29, 2026) - Today, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins visited the livestock inspection facilities at the Douglas, Arizona, Port of Entry, joined by Rep. Juan Ciscomani (AZ-06), Rep. Andy Biggs (AZ-05), Rep. Eli Crane (AZ-02), and Arizona Director of Agriculture Paul Brierley, highlighting the Department's extensive preparedness measures ahead of the planned reopening of the port to livestock trade on August 24. During her visit, Secretary Rollins also announced USDA's commitment to invest $25 million toward the opening of a new sterile fly dispersal facility in Arizona to strengthen the nation's long-term response to New World screwworm (NWS).
"Protecting American agriculture begins with protecting our borders and ensuring we have the strongest animal health safeguards anywhere in the world. The Douglas Port of Entry will reopen only because USDA has implemented one of the most rigorous livestock inspection protocols in history, giving us confidence we can safely resume this critical trade while ensuring cattle crossing the border are free from New World screwworm," said Secretary Rollins. "At the same time, today's announcement marks another major investment in our long-term strategy to push this pest back into Mexico and ultimately eradicate it from North America. Together with our partners in Arizona, we're strengthening the infrastructure needed to protect American ranchers for generations to come."
"Proud to join Secretary Rollins for today's announcement of the reopening of the Douglas Port of Entry alongside this critical investment in Arizona," said Representative Juan Ciscomani (AZ-06). "Local agriculture leaders and I have been fighting to deliver this sterile fly dispersal facility because Arizona's livestock industry cannot afford to wait on the New World screwworm threat. This $25 million investment is the direct result of that work, and I'm grateful to Secretary Rollins for listening to Arizona's producers and delivering on it. Her responsiveness and willingness to act swiftly on commonsense solutions has made a real difference. This is Secretary Rollins' second visit to Arizona in just a few months, reflecting her commitment to hearing directly from those on the ground and delivering real results for our farmers, ranchers, and rural communities."
Secretary Rollins also received updates from USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) personnel responsible for implementing enhanced inspection protocols for each and every animal entering through Douglas once trade resumes. Under USDA's phased reopening plan announced last week, each animal will receive multiple veterinary inspections, including by USDA veterinarians before entering the United States. Any animal failing to meet APHIS import criteria will be denied entry, and detection of NWS would immediately halt imports through the facility.
Full text: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDAOC/bulletins/422beb9
2. Don't just measure sow longevity but also what drives it
Identify early indicators that shape a sow's lifetime productivity, such as claw health.
Feedstuffs
July 29, 2026
Keeping sows productive through additional parities helps spread gilt development costs, maximize lifetime pigs weaned and improve overall herd profitability. But while longevity is one of the industry's most important performance indicators, many operations may overlook an early factor influencing whether a sow ever reaches her full productive potential.
"Longevity is already a main KPI for most producers," said Lucas Rodrigues, Ph.D., swine technical manager with Zinpro. "The opportunity isn't just focusing on longevity. It's recognizing the factors that determine whether a sow stays in the herd long enough to reach her genetic potential."
Rodrigues believes operations benefit from paying closer attention to claw health as a KPI because it can provide an earlier indication of future performance.
Most producers already monitor longevity and production metrics such as conception rate, farrowing rate and pigs weaned. Claw health information helps provide a more complete management picture.
Longevity issues start early
Most involuntary removals don't happen overnight. They're often the result of issues that begin months, or even years, before a sow is ultimately culled.
"Lameness is still one of the primary reasons sows leave the herd," Rodrigues explained. "But when you start investigating why a sow became lame, you'll often find the process started much earlier with claw lesions that developed over time."
Full text: https://www.feedstuffs.com/swine/don-t-just-measure-sow-longevity-but-also-what-drives-it
3. New avian influenza tools for poultry industry on horizon
Work has started on numerous research projects to help the poultry industry better protect itself from HPAI.
By Mark Clements
WATTAgNet.com
July 29, 2026
Poultry producers can expect to benefit from numerous new tools over the next few years to help protect their businesses from losses associated with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).
To help give the industry the options it needs, various research projects are underway in the U.S. with support of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Inspection Service. Following a competitive process, the agency awarded more than $100 million to a wide range of research projects late last year. The funded projects are designed to advance prevention, therapeutics, vaccine development and research about transmission and potential biosecurity solutions for HPAI.
Looking into light
At Columbia University, work into far-ultraviolet C light received funding. Among objectives of the study is to determine how susceptible the HPAI virus is to far-ultraviolet C exposure.
David Welch, assistant professor of radiation oncology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and leader of the study, explained: "We already know that far-ultraviolet C is very effective in inactivating viruses such as coronavirus and other influenza viruses, and we expect similar efficacy for avian influenza."
4. Global leaders unite to strengthen animal health preparedness
Recurring theme was the need for proactive mitigation strategies, including diagnostics and veterinary vaccines.
Kansas State University
National Hog Farmer
July 30, 2026
More than 110 leaders from industry, government and academia recently gathered in Manhattan, Kansas, for the Symposium on Biomanufacturing: Mitigating Transboundary Animal Disease Threats, hosted by the College of Veterinary Medicine in partnership with the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility, or NBAF.
The invitation-only event brought together experts from across the United States and multiple continents to strengthen partnerships and explore collaborative solutions to emerging animal disease threats. The symposium was planned in partnership with Juergen A. Richt, university distinguished professor and Kansas Regents distinguished professor, director of the DHS Emeritus Center of Excellence for Emerging and Zoonotic Animal Diseases, or CEEZAD, and director of the NIH Center on Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, or CEZID, at K-State.
K-State faculty and researchers joined international leaders from government, academia and industry to share expertise on vaccine development, diagnostics, manufacturing and disease preparedness. Opening remarks from Hans Coetzee, vice president for research; Alfonso Clavijo, director of NBAF, and Richt highlighted the importance of collaboration in protecting animal agriculture, global food security and public health.
Michigan Quarter Horse Tests Positive for Strangles
EDCC Health Watch
Equus Magazine
July 30, 2026
On July 15, a 3-year-old Quarter Horse gelding in Alger County, Michigan, tested positive for strangles. The gelding developed clinical signs on July 13, including lethargy, fever, nasal discharge, anorexia, and ocular discharge. He is currently recovering. Twelve additional horses have been exposed.
Unvaccinated California Horse Euthanized After Contracting WNV
EDCC Health Watch
TheHorse.com
July 30, 2026
On July 29, a 6-year-old Andalusian stallion in Sacramento County, California, tested positive for West Nile virus (WNV). The unvaccinated horse developed clinical signs on July 22, including fever, Grade 4 ataxia, and muscle fasciculations. He was euthanized.
This is California's second confirmed WNV case of 2026.
Full text: https://thehorse.com/1146320/unvaccinated-california-horse-euthanized-after-contracting-wnv/
6. Antimicrobial resistance in nontyphoidal Salmonella associated with multistate outbreaks linked to backyard poultry, United States, 2018-2023
By Marisa Wong; Laura Ford; Sean Stapleton, et al
Sec. Infectious Diseases: Epidemiology and Prevention
Volume 14 - 2026
FrontiersIn.org
Abstract
Introduction:
State and local health departments and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) routinely investigate multistate outbreaks of salmonellosis associated with backyard poultry (BYP). Here, we describe antimicrobial resistance in multistate outbreaks of nontyphoidal salmonellosis associated with BYP from 2018 to 2023.
We analyzed patient and outbreak data from CDC's National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System and System for Enteric Disease Response, Investigation, and Coordination databases. Isolate resistance was determined by antimicrobial susceptibility testing or predicted by whole genome sequencing. We classified isolates as resistant, multi-drug resistant (MDR; resistant to =3 antimicrobial classes), or having clinically relevant resistance (CRR; resistant to ampicillin, azithromycin, ceftriaxone, or trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole; or nonsusceptibility to ciprofloxacin), and outbreaks as resistant, MDR, or CRR if =3 isolates and =10% of isolates met the corresponding resistance definitions. Statistical analyses comparing patient variables, outbreak size, and annual number of outbreaks with resistance status were performed.
Results:
Among 78 multistate BYP-associated salmonellosis outbreaks, 36 (46%) exhibited resistance, 10 (13%) were classified as MDR, and 12 (15%) were classified as CRR. Enteritidis was the most frequent serotype, causing 22 (28%) outbreaks; three were resistant (two CRR only outbreaks, one CRR and MDR outbreak). Among the 6,262 patient isolates included in multistate BYP-associated salmonellosis outbreaks, 2,248 (36%) were resistant, 209 (3%) were MDR, and 395 (6%) were CRR.
Discussion:
Although nearly half of BYP-associated salmonellosis outbreaks and one-third of outbreak isolates were resistant, CRR and MDR outbreaks and isolates were infrequent. Continued monitoring for antimicrobial resistance is warranted because of the persistence of BYP-associated salmonellosis and the potential for BYP to serve as a reservoir for resistant Salmonella that can spread to people.
Full text: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1854943/full