1. New World Screwworm (NWS) Update for Export of Livestock to Canada
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Bulletin
July 14, 2026
New World Screwworm (NWS) Update for Export of Livestock to Canada:
Due to the detection of?New World screwworm?(NWS,?Cochliomyia hominivorax) in the United States, effective immediately, Canada has suspended the export of the following:
From the state of?Texas:
Equidae (horses, mules, etc.); Suidae (pigs, wild boar); Bovinae (cattle, bison, water buffalo); Caprinae (sheep, goats); Cervidae (deer, elk, moose, caribou, reindeer, etc.); Camelidae (llamas, alpacas, vicunas, guanacos, and Bactrian camels)
Importation from all other states is permitted as long as the animal(s)?has/have not resided in nor transited Texas?during the?21 days?immediately prior to export to Canada.?
ACTION: The USDA Accredited Veterinarian must add the following NWS Certification Statements to the health certificate when issuing any health certificate for export of the species listed above to Canada, regardless of the state of origin of the animals. All certificates issued on or after 13 August 2026 must contain these statements or the certificate will be rejected. Please see instructions on APHIS website: NWS Certification Statements and Instructions* - 14 July 2026
[*See: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/export-live-animals-canada ]
I, the undersigned USDA Accredited Veterinarian, certify the following as endorsed by the undersigned USDA Official Veterinarian:
One. The animal(s) has/have not resided in nor transited through a New World Screwworm (NWS) affected state during the twenty-one (21) days immediately prior to export to Canada.
Two. After due enquiry of the exporter/shipper, the animal(s) will not reside in nor transit through a New World Screwworm (NWS) affected state from the time of certification to the time of presentation at the first port of entry into Canada.
Three. The exporter/shipper has been advised that the animal(s) is/are not permitted to reside in nor transit through a New World Screwworm (NWS) affected state during the twenty-one (21) days immediately prior to export to Canada otherwise the shipment will be refused entry into Canada.
Source: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDAAPHIS/bulletins/4208458
2. Swine-Focused NC State Professor Wins 2026 AVMA Animal Welfare Award
By Burgetta Wheeler
Farms.com
July 13, 2026
Recognizing a researcher dedicated primarily to swine welfare for the first time, the American Veterinary Medicine Association has selected Dr. Monique Pairis-Garcia, professor of global production animal welfare at the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine, as the recipient of its 2026 Animal Welfare Award.
The association will present the award - which recognizes achievements in advancing animal welfare through leadership, public service, education, research, product development or advocacy - to Dr. Pairis-Garcia this weekend at its annual convention in California. Dr. Shelly Vaden, professor of internal medicine at NC State, will receive the group's 2026 Clinical Research Award as well.
As a veterinarian in North Carolina, the nation's third-largest pork producer, Dr. Pairis-Garcia said being recognized for her important global work advancing pain management for pigs is especially meaningful.
3. Penn Vet's Working Dog Center Receives Two-Year $404,000 USDA Grant to Combat NWS [edited]
Univ. of Penna. Almanac
vol. 73, issue 1
July 14, 2026
The Working Dog Center at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) has received a two-year $404,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that will develop a canine-based surveillance capability for locating the soil-stage New World screwworm (NWS). The grant, awarded through the USDA's NWS Grand Challenge program, is an element of the NWS Domestic Readiness and Response Initiative. Because working directly with NWS is highly regulated, researchers will use a screwworm proxy species to evaluate how effectively detection dogs can locate the target odor while the pests are in their underground stage. The team will use in-lab olfactometer testing and field trials to measure search accuracy, time-to-detection, and effective buried target detection range.
Renowned for its research and training in canine scent detection, the Penn Vet Working Dog Center has demonstrated dogs' ability to identify distinct odor signatures associated with diseases, invasive species, and other biological targets, including hemangiosarcoma, chronic wasting disease, ovarian cancer, spotted lanternflies, and COVID-19.
The study, titled "Detection Dogs as a Surveillance Tool for Locating Soil-Stage New World Screwworm Using Proxy Calliphoridae Species," was one of 40 projects out of a total of 226 submissions to receive funding through the USDA's NWS Grand Challenge. Projects were selected based on their potential to significantly accelerate the prevention and response to NWS.
Penn Vet's Cynthia (Cindy) Otto and Clara Wilson and Texas Tech's Chad L. Cross will serve as co-PIs on the study.
4. Minnesota restricts pet imports from NWS-infested states
Importation of pets from New World screwworm-infested sites is banned, but animals from unaffected areas of states with NWS can still come, provided their handlers follow a list of new rules.
FarmProgress.com
July 14, 2026
Due to concern that adopting dogs and cats from areas that have been infested with New World screwworm may lead to the spread of the pest, the Minnesota Board of Animal Health has announced new restrictions on the import of those pets from states with active NWS infestations. This includes a ban on importing any animals from an actively infested NWS site.
These domestic restrictions are in addition to existing international restrictions on companion animal imports from NWS endemic areas published in April.
"Protecting Minnesota's animals from NWS is a top priority, and imports of NWS-infested animals is the greatest risk to our state," said Brian Hoefs, executive director of the Minnesota Board of Animal Health and Minnesota's state veterinarian. "Adding some small measures to existing import regulations is a simple way we can continue to reduce the risk of importing NWS while allowing imports to continue."
Full text: https://www.farmprogress.com/animal-health/minnesota-restricts-pet-imports-from-nws-infested-states
5. Americas strengthen One Health commitment
Declaration calls for coordinated action to address zoonotic diseases, food safety risks, climate change and antimicrobial resistance.
National Hog Farmer
July 14, 2026
Every year on July 6, the international community marks World Zoonoses Day, raising awareness of the risks posed by diseases transmitted between animals and humans while promoting practices to prevent them.
This observance is particularly relevant given that an estimated 60% of all known human infectious diseases are zoonotic, while nearly 75% of emerging infectious diseases in humans originate from domestic or wild animals.
These figures underscore the need for an integrated, cross-sectoral approach to addressing zoonotic diseases and other health threats by bringing together human health, animal health and environmental conservation.
Against this backdrop, the Quadripartite Alliance-comprising the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the World Organisation for Animal Health, the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme-together with regional partners including the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture and the Regional International Organization for Plant and Animal Health, have announced the signing of a Joint Declaration to strengthen regional coordination under the One Health approach in the Americas, marking the first regional agreement of its kind.
Full text: https://www.nationalhogfarmer.com/livestock-management/americas-strengthen-one-health-commitment
6. Notice of Request for Revision to and Extension of Approval of an Information Collection; National Animal Health Reporting System and
Handling Swine With Potential Vesicular Disease
Federal Register Volume 91, Number 133 (Tuesday, July 14, 2026)
Notices
Pages 43078-43079
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FR Doc No: 2026-14121
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2026-0727]
Notice of Request for Revision to and Extension of Approval of an Information Collection; National Animal Health Reporting System and
Handling Swine With Potential Vesicular Disease
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Revision to and extension of approval of an information collection; comment request.
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's
(APHIS') intention to request a revision to and extension of approval of an information collection associated with APHIS' National List of
Reportable Animal Diseases National Animal Health Reporting System.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before September 14, 2026
Full text: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-07-14/html/2026-14121.htm