Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

usda.gov

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

151–160 of 219 posts

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#151

Post by andrew_lettuce »

alephnerd wrote: post #97
SoftTalker wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Already happening. Beef is rapidly becomming unaffordable. A steak at the supermarket is >$20. Can't imagine what they cost at a restaurant. I've switched to mostly turkey, chicken, and pork.

That's due to issues around monopolization in the Dairy and Cattle industry in the US [1]. 70% of all processors in the dairy and cattle industry are now owned by 3 companies. Processors don't own cattle - they just process raw material like dairy and meat into cheese and pasteurized milk and handle the entire supply chain. But because they control the supply chain, distribution, and even the feed [0] used they can s…

This isn't true in Canada and we're seeing as big of price increases for beef, greater than the US for ground beef. This is a supply issue while demand has increased. Drought and costs have also impacted herd size

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#152

Post by paulcole »

xipho wrote: post #141

Very hard to escape biology unless you invest in understanding it. Ticks, mosquito-born diseases, agricultural pests, they don't care about AI, politics, or space-races or geo political boundaries. We, on the other hand, require life to go on, it's asynchronous. This is why natural history collections, and taxonomists are going to be more critical than ever, at some point we'll need to re-invest in knowing what's out…

In what is it “asynchronous”?

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#154

Post by hotep99 »

Eextra953 wrote: post #145
db48x wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The “cure” is an unceasing war. Then COVID hit and the war ceased for a few months.

So with pests and viruses there is no real eradication? Do they really require an unceasing war to reign them in? I have no knowledge of this field - just curious.

Screwworms could probably be eradicated in theory but it would require spreading the sterile fly program to the entirety of the Americas which isn't going to happen. There would always be a pocket somewhere in the Amazon of fertile flies so it isn't really viable. The point of stopping them at the Darien Gap was that there was a geographically small area where their spread could be halted from entering Central and North America and re-establishing themselves.

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#155

Post by mahirsaid »

alephnerd wrote: post #105
andsoitis wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not essential. We can eat less beef. Better for health, the environment.

> Better for health, the environment. India has an equally large cattle industry that outproduces American dairy and cattle, yet their industry has a fraction of the carbon and methane impact as American dairy and cattle rearing [0] because the feed used in Indian industry is crop residue instead of industrialized meat+grain mixtures. American Ag is hyperconsolidated into 3 processors [1] which makes it difficult for…

Regardless, it's terrible to have around you. Your dog will have it too if let be. they do need to be controlled if it gets out of hand. Better now than when its a bigger problem.

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#156

Post by 1718627440 »

Bender wrote: post #94

Whether your meat comes form South America or the US or the EU, always wear gloves when handling raw meats and don't touch your face. There are thousands of types of dangerous larvae that can infect via the eyes rubbing the eyes or the nose picking ones nose when handling raw meats and vegetables. Cutting meat slices thinner and cooking them well kills larvae. Marinating meats with something that contains acetic acid…

That won't help your costumers that eat the raw meat you prepared, you still need to have proper hygiene in the complete food chain.

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#157

Post by 1718627440 »

f1shy wrote: post #148
renewiltord wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's with everyone saying they know some secret that everyone else is trying to suppress? Is it just that we all spend time in our bubble and take that to other groups? I don't even know what agenda he's going against by saying one should be careful around raw meat. Who's on the other side of this?

I have had lots of discussions with people who insist in eating all raw. I have been in a restaurant where a teenager ordered a raw beef right beaid us. Made me sick just of seeing, feeling the raw meat smell, and hearing the chewing. I have seen enough “chefs” handling raw meat in tv, putting it literally seconds in heat, and basically eating raw. There is no agenda, but I do see a trend.

I thought not eating raw meat was more of an US thing, here in Europe/Germany there are some dishes that consists of raw meat, and that doesn't mean heated for seconds. Guess that's why we also have stricter hygiene rules.

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#158

Post by belter »

f1shy wrote: post #148
renewiltord wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's with everyone saying they know some secret that everyone else is trying to suppress? Is it just that we all spend time in our bubble and take that to other groups? I don't even know what agenda he's going against by saying one should be careful around raw meat. Who's on the other side of this?

I have had lots of discussions with people who insist in eating all raw. I have been in a restaurant where a teenager ordered a raw beef right beaid us. Made me sick just of seeing, feeling the raw meat smell, and hearing the chewing. I have seen enough “chefs” handling raw meat in tv, putting it literally seconds in heat, and basically eating raw. There is no agenda, but I do see a trend.

The french steak tartare is very common in France, in many corporate canteen.

Re: Mexico to US livestock trade halted due to screwworm spread

#160

Post by starkparker »

ajmurmann wrote: post #19
neutered_knot wrote: post #15

A story from 2020 about how effective the US funded anti-screwworm program used to be. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/05/flesh-ea... Archive link: https://archive.ph/3sD9d

Why is it "used to be"? I've heard about the program before and thought it was incredible. What happened to it? Edit: Brief research tells me the screwworms broke though to Mexico in November 2024 after cases started increasing north of the Darian Gap throughout 2023 ( https://www.aphis.usda.gov/news/program-update/new-world-scr... ). It does seem like the funding now is happening through USDA rather than USAID ( htt…

Smuggling's also a contributing factor, at least in Honduras: https://www.drovers.com/news/industry/surprising-link-betwee...
Post reply on HN