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The United States, Mexico, and Mercosur, particularly Argentina and Brazil, are key players in meeting global demand for animal protein.
The global livestock and meat market is expected to grow from $1.37 trillion in 2024 to $1.60 trillion in 2034, and the livestock sector is key to the economy and livelihoods of the population.
However, in a globalised world with increasingly integrated agro-industrial systems and expanding agricultural frontiers, diseases know no borders. Animal health is a key component of food security, public health, and the competitiveness of agricultural systems.
Cases such as the New World Screwworm and avian influenza support this perspective and highlight the vulnerability and need for collaboration between countries. In this regard, the New World Screwworm Disease Eradication Program is an example of how cooperation between Mexico and the United States can be strategic and indispensable.
This pest, which caused enormous losses to livestock in North America, was eradicated in the United States in 1966 thanks to an innovative strategy: the release of sterile males to interrupt the reproductive cycle.
Building on this success, Mexico and the United States launched a joint campaign that succeeded in eliminating the New World Screwworm from Mexican territory in 1991. But eradication did not eliminate the risk. To prevent infestation from Central and South America, both countries helped establish a biological barrier in Panama. These efforts continue today. The reappearance of the New World Screwworm in 2023 has set off alarm bells across the hemisphere.
Its return demonstrates that sustained surveillance and control are essential, and that the experience of Mexico and the United States can serve as a guide for other regions. It also reinforces the idea that, without regional cooperation, no sanitary barrier is completely secure.
Another common challenge is avian influenza, which since 2022, has caused significant outbreaks in several countries, particularly in the United States. Mexico has also been affected by domestic outbreaks and trade restrictions. In addition to its economic cost, avian influenza poses a threat to public health due to its zoonotic potential.
Another successful example of regional coordination is the control of foot-and-mouth disease. Although both countries are currently free of foot-and-mouth disease — Mexico thanks to vaccination and the United States without it — rapid alert mechanisms and binational simulation exercises remain in place. The same is true in Mercosur, through mechanisms such as the Southern Agricultural Council (CAS).
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the United States could cause losses of more than $20 billion in the first year. In Mexico, livestock accounts for almost 40 per cent of agricultural gross domestic product (GDP), and access to high-value markets such as Japan and South Korea depends directly on the country’s health situation. This makes it clear that animal health is not only a technical issue, but also a tool for trade policy and economic development.
Other important experiences in Latin America that illustrate the value of regional cooperation include the Permanent Veterinary Committee of the Southern Cone (CVP), which promotes policy harmonisation in Mercosur and plays a key role in epidemiological surveillance, traceability, and strengthening public veterinary services, including in non-member countries such as Colombia.
In Central America and the Caribbean, countries such as Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic have strengthened their animal health systems with the support of international organizations such as IICA, among others.
Animal health is a transnational public good whose protection requires investment, technical capacity, and cooperation among countries. New challenges such as the intensification of livestock production, increased trade, and the emergence of emerging diseases require renewed and strengthened commitments.
What is at stake is not only animal health but also the livelihoods of millions of producers, food security, and the stability of agribusiness supply chains. Investing in animal health is investing in resilience, competitiveness, and well-being.
Muhammad Ibrahim is an agricultural engineer and Guyana’s candidate for Director General of IICA (Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture)
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