The federal government broke ground on Friday on a $750 million facility in Edinburg to produce sterile flies as part of an effort to protect the cattle industry from the New World screwworm.

The new facility at Moore Air Base near Edinburg will create sterile New World screwworm flies. The United States Department of Agriculture will release those flies to stop the pests from breeding.

"This facility will initially produce an additional 100 million sterile flies per week in phase one," USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said at the event. "When we get to phase two at the end of 2028, it'll be at 300 million sterile flies."

The fly lays eggs on open wounds that create the screwworm parasites. It can kill livestock if left untreated.

For Teo Martinez, also known as the Hidalgo County Cowboy, the threat isn't just talk.

"We had a little ranch in Mexico, and I saw it for the first time with the cattle and the horses, dogs, and chickens," Martinez said. "It's not just cattle; it's all animals."

Martinez says the infection is something you don't forget.

"The first thing is the smell," Martinez said. "It's so bad because these animals, they smell like some dead animal."

As previously reported, the parasite has been detected in Nuevo León, Mexico, only 90 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.

The opening of this facility comes two months after the USDA started releasing sterile flies from a separate facility at Moore Air Base. Officials say producing them here will help speed up response time.

"USDA has been actively monitoring the over 100 New World screwworm traps and 7,000 additional insect traps along the southern border," Rollins said. "We've had zero detections along the border, and we're hoping that'll hold."

Martinez says if the screwworm spreads, the impact can go beyond just the ranches.

"People eat meat, and right now if they catch it at the border, what happens? The prices for cattle will be high," Martinez said.

His message to other ranchers: "I wish we never get it here, but we're so close to the border. Take care of the animals."

Federal officials said they expect this facility to be up and running by the end of 2027.

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