The U.S. Department of Agriculture is beginning recruitment this month for 228 positions at a sterile fly production facility in Edinburg, Texas, intended to help protect livestock and wildlife from New World Screwworm. Agriculture Secretary Brooke L. Rollins announced the hiring effort on Nov. 10, with online applications available that day through USAJobs.gov.
Applicants can also meet hiring managers at a three-day recruitment event in McAllen from Nov. 17 through Nov. 19. Interviews will take place at the Embassy Suites by Hilton McAllen Convention Center, 800 Convention Center Blvd., from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. CST each day. Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Dudley Hoskins said the event offers an opportunity for people who may not previously have considered government employment.
The production facility at Moore Air Base is part of Rollins’ five-pronged strategy against the pest, expanding domestic capacity to protect animals and public health. Rollins described protecting U.S. livestock and wildlife from screwworm as a national security priority. She credited the Trump administration, the Department of War and the Army Corps of Engineers with accelerating the project, saying the facility would open nearly five years ahead of schedule.
Construction is scheduled to finish in April 2027. According to USDA, it will be the first U.S.-based sterile fly production facility, with initial output anticipated at 100 million flies per week in 2027. Production is expected to reach approximately 300 million flies weekly when the facility operates at full capacity.
The process involves raising screwworm flies in a biosecure environment, sterilizing them through irradiation and releasing them in selected areas. Female screwworm flies mate only once, so eggs resulting from mating with sterile males do not hatch. USDA says the sterile flies pose no danger to people or animals because they cannot produce larvae.
Sterile insect releases have supported successful screwworm eradication efforts for decades, alongside surveillance, restrictions on animal movement and public education. USDA describes the technique as a sustainable, environmentally friendly method of controlling pests by preventing reproduction.
USDA currently funds two sterile fly production facilities in North America. A Panama facility produces 100 million flies each week and serves as the backbone of current control efforts. A second facility, which opened in Mexico in June 2026, is increasing production toward an expected capacity of 100 million flies weekly. USDA says the expanded network will strengthen its ability to respond rapidly to screwworm threats.
Fertile screwworms infest living tissue in warm-blooded animals, threatening livestock and wildlife. USDA says they are not a food safety concern because they do not infest meat, fruits, vegetables or other food sources.
