Mexico expands anti‑barrenador campaign with free Exzolt drug and sterile‑fly aerial releases

The state government of Tamaulipas is distributing the anti‑barrenador medication Exzolt to cattle producers at no cost, in partnership with the Regional Cattle Union and local municipalities. Each litre of the drug, valued at 9,000 pesos, yields 500 two‑milliliter vials that treat newborn calves, sealing umbilical wounds and breaking the fly‑egg cycle. After two months of field use, active cases fell from 23 to 6 in Tula, from 20 to 3 in El Mante, and to two in González.

In the northern state of Coahuila, the municipality of Monclova has been incorporated into the national sterile‑fly aerial dispersal operation. The program combines sanitary surveillance, cattle vaccination and the release of sterile flies to suppress the barrenador worm population. Authorities note that continued import of cattle from regions where the pest persists sustains the risk, but the new technologies are expected to shorten eradication time compared with the three‑decade effort of the 1960s.

Both initiatives form part of a coordinated effort to protect Mexico’s livestock sector from the costly barrenador worm infestation.