The organization that represents ranchers in the state of Sonora says U.S. Department of Agriculture personnel are inspecting cattle facilities there as a deadly parasite has suspended livestock imports from Mexico.
Jesús Ancheta, a spokesperson for the Unión Ganadera Regional de Sonora, which inspects Sonoran cattle, said USDA inspectors are checking points of entry and exit for cattle in the Mexican state.
He says after inspections this week, the USDA will consider reopening the border.
Cattle imports from Mexico have been suspended intermittently since November of last year, when a case of New World screwworm was discovered in a cow in southern Mexico near the Guatemala border. The flesh-eating parasite can be deadly to warm-blooded animals.
The parasite has not been found in Sonora.
The USDA has not responded to a request for comment.
