President Trump appoints senior advisor to combat screwworm

WASHINGTON, D.C. (KVIA) -- President Donald Trump appointed John Bellinger as the senior advisor for New World Screwworm Preparedness, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Monday.

In his role, Bellinger will help the USDA combat NWS. As of Monday, there are four confirmed NWS detections in Texas. The parasite infests livestock and other animals.

"New World Screwworm presents unique challenges to America’s ranchers," Bellinger said in a statement. "I look forward to working with USDA and our state partners as continuing ramping up testing, detection, and release of our tools to reduce these flies’ populations."

Bellinger serves as Chair of the Committee on Research at the Texas A&M Board of Regents, according to the USDA. He's the former CEO of Food Safety Net Services, the CEO of of Agri-West International and the former chairman of the U.S. Meat Export federation.

In 2022, he was inducted into the U.S. Meat Industry hall of Fame.