Secretary Rollins still not ready to reopen  Southern Border for Mexican cattle 

On Nov. 3, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins traveled to Mexico City, Mexico, to meet with Mexican officials, including the country’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, to discuss their progress with New World screwworm and the possibility of reopening the Southern Border for cattle imports. The Mexican border has been closed since May 2025, when NWS cases were inching closer to the United States. 

Although Rollins said she was pleased with the meeting and Mexico’s efforts to control NWS, she has announced that she plans to hold off on allowing cattle to move across the U.S.-Mexico border. Although President Donald Trump has spoken about his desire to reopen the border and allow Mexican cattle into the U.S. with hopes of lower consumer beef prices, Rollins has taken a more conservative approach. 

“We’re still not at the point where I am comfortable opening the ports, but I think every day that goes by we get a little bit closer,” she said. “I want to have every confidence that we have overturned every stone, that we understand every nuance, that we are deploying every tool in the toolkit.” 

Although Rollins has previously criticized Mexico’s handling of NWS and their delayed response, she said the tone of Monday’s meeting was different and she was impressed by the way the country has been working to contain the flesh-eating parasite the last few months. 

“I believe sincerely, it is the most collaborative effort, perhaps in our lifetime, between the two different departments of agriculture,” she added. 

According to Rollins, right now there are around 250,000 Mexican cattle waiting at the Southern Border. In Rollins’ statement after the meeting in Mexico she did not allude to a specific timeframe for which she expected the ports to reopen. Instead, Rollins said she planned to meet with top U.S. officials later this week and discuss the matter with Trump. 

Even with pressure from the White House, Rollins said she does not want to prematurely open the border, which could have devastating effects on the U.S. beef industry, which is already operating on historically low cow numbers. She said high beef prices are a non-factor when it comes to her decision with Mexico’s border. 

“I think that we can never compromise the safety of the herd for the cost,” Rollins said. 

Lacey Vilhauer can be reached at 620-227-1871 or [email protected].