Key insights
- The detection of the New World screwworm in Texas has led to a surge in Merck & Co. shares, up over 3.5%, due to its subsidiary Merck Animal Health producing a newly approved topical solution for treating infestations. This event highlights potential growth for animal health companies addressing agricultural threats and underscores the economic importance of livestock protection.
A New World screwworm has been detected in a 3-week-old calf in Zavala County, Texas, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said Wednesday.
New World screwworm larvae “burrow into the flesh of living animals, causing serious damage to livestock and economic losses,” the USDA noted in a press statement about the detection.
Larvae were identified in the young calf’s umbilical area, the statement said, adding that there are no further detections to date.
“USDA invested heavily in the tools needed to eliminate NWS ever since cases started increasing in Central America and Mexico. The United States has defeated this pest before, and we will do it again,” the USDA said.
The USDA and Texas officials are working to contain and eradicate NWS from the country, including establishing a 20-kilometer (12 mile) infested zone around the detection and enforcing quarantines, movement controls, and surveillance in the area.
“Protecting our livestock industry is a national security issue of the utmost importance, and USDA is wasting no time in taking action,” said Dudley Hoskins, undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs at the USDA.
“USDA invested heavily in the tools needed to eliminate NWS ever since cases started increasing in Central America and Mexico,” Hoskins said. “The United States has defeated this pest before, and we will do it again.”
In December, the Food and Drug Administration granted conditional approval to the topical solution Exzolt Cattle-CA1, which is used to prevent and treat New World screwworm infestations, and which is produced by Merck Animal Health, a division of Merck & Co.
The price of Merck shares was up more than 3.5% in early trading on Thursday.
— CNBC’s Ryan Ruggiero contributed to this article.