The U.S. government announced plans Wednesday to build an $8.5 million fly-breeding facility near the US-Mexico border as part of an initiative to prevent a flesh-eating parasite from infesting cattle.

The planned site, slated to be located at Moore Air Base in Texas, will breed millions of sterile male New World screwworm flies. The males will then be released into the wild to mate with females, preventing them from laying eggs that turn into flesh-eating larvae, the Associated Press reported.

A female New World screwworm fly lays eggs in the wound of an animal. The eggs then hatch into larvae, or maggots, that burrow into the flesh, causing potentially deadly damage, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The U.S. has previously bred and released New World screwworm flies into the wild, completely eradicating the insect from the country for decades. While there are treatments for infestations of the fly, officials worry about the economic impacts on farmers. Household pets and humans can also be infested by the larvae, AP reported.

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins speaks to members of the press outside of the White House in Washington, D.C. on February 14, 2025. (Getty Images)

New World screwworm flies are endemic in Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and some South American countries, according to the USDA.

“We trust the enthusiasm for cooperation that Secretary Rollins mentioned, and based on objective results and the reports from the USDA mission visiting us this week, we will be able to restart exports of our cattle as soon as possible,” Mexican Agriculture Secretary Julio Berdegué said in a post on X on Wednesday.

The USDA did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.