Live imports of Mexican cattle can again be imported into the U.S. starting Aug. 24, 2026, under a new plan released Friday by the USDA.
The announcement came Friday evening after almost 13 months of banned entry for Mexican cattle, due to the spread of New World screwworm in that country. USDA said a “coordinated, phased reopening of southern cattle ports, contingent on Mexico’s adherence to the Joint Action Plan” can start in 30 days.
The reopening will first occur at the Douglas, Arizona, port of entry, USDA said, “while simultaneously initiating the operational steps necessary for subsequent openings at the Santa Teresa, New Mexico, and Columbus, New Mexico, ports. Every animal entering the United States through these ports will undergo a full USDA inspection to ensure it is free of any signs of NWS.”
As of July 24, USDA had seen 42 total animal cases, primarily in Texas (one inactive case for a dog in New Mexico) since the first confirmed case on June 3, 2026. There were only nine active cases reported at screwworm.gov at the end of July 24. The Douglas, Arizona, facility is 325 miles from the case closest to it, USDA reported.
“Protecting the United States from NWS and pushing this pest out of Mexico and back to the Darien Gap is a top priority at USDA and has the full attention of the Trump Administration,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. “The closure of the Southern ports of entry for the last year has been a tough but necessary action to control the spread of NWS in Mexico and protect the American livestock industry. Thanks to the work across the federal government as well as state, local, and industry partners, it is now safe to reopen the Douglas, Arizona, port in 30 days to resume the hundreds year old movement of cattle.”
USDA said the reopening timeline will remain flexible and may be adjusted based on Mexico’s progress in meeting Action Plan milestones and addressing critical issues. The opening of ports may be paused if USDA identifies increased risk in Sonora or Chihuahua via post-opening audits or other observations/information.
USDA indicated that while other Mexican states have been unable to control of “legal and illegal movement” the more mountainous northwest states of Sonora and Chihuahua “do have a track record of success in these spaces, giving USDA confidence that they can do the job.”
NCBA Colin Woodall, in a statement released Friday evening, praised Rollins and USDA for using its five-point plan to aggressively control spread of NWS. “Their work – along with the diligence of cattle producers in border states – bought the United States valuable time to improve our domestic readiness. The whole-of-government response has put us in a strong position to begin safely and gradually reopening our southern border to cattle shipments.”
“This decision will help normalize business for cattle operations throughout the border states and Southern Plains. We appreciate the continued work of USDA to support American producers and the U.S. cattle industry.”
The closure of the border, which will have gone almost 14 months by Aug. 24, saw a brief reprieve in July 2025 as a staged rollout for reopening borders was shut down after just two days. Since then beef prices at the market have increased in 2026 against an ongoing tightening supply of cattle. With the closure of Lubbock Cattle in February 2026, the industry began raising expectations and demand to reopen transit of Mexican cattle through those ports in regions not affected by NWS.
