“We’ve been using Ivomec on the cattle in northern Mexico for a long time to treat the flies, plus we will usually freeze [temperature] by the middle to end of October, and then the flies are gone, and we don’t have to worry about them again until May,” he adds.

There is a fear among Texas and Mexican cattle producers that the border may never open. If that occurs, Gonzalez expects his country’s government to help build facilities to increase packing capacity. “It’s expensive for us to feed cattle in Chihuahua. We do see some corn grown there, but not enough for this many more cattle,” he explains.

Frank Welch has cared for the cattle that have come across the border headed to Rogers’ feedyard for many years. Typically, he will look after nearly 3,000 head of grass-fed cattle at a time that are sent to the West Texas range to grow before going back to the feedyard. “This year, I’ve only had a few hundred. Mark [Rogers] has had to find other cattle to run out here,” Welch says.

Rogers and Welch agree that the Mexican cattle are hearty and acclimate well to the Texas environment. They have few health problems, even in the small calves that were sent across when the border was open for a short time earlier in the year.

BORDER CLOSURE CREATES UNCERTAINTY

The decrease in cattle coming to the U.S. not only affects the feedyards but many others in the industry. Those who find themselves out of a job include truckers, employees at the ports of entry and those who help expedite getting the cattle to the border on the Mexican side and to the feedyards on the U.S. side.

“I really don’t know if we will ever get back to normal business down here in the Southern Plains feedlots. And, I’m not sure what I will do or my neighbors [will do] if the border doesn’t reopen,” Rogers adds.

“We have sent cattle across the border for over 200 years. There are generations and generations that have been doing this. We dealt with screwworm years ago and fought it, and we can again,” Gonzalez says. “It seems to have gotten political this time. They [both governments] are just playing games.”

He says fly traps were set at his feedyards in northwest Mexico, and all the flies that were captured tested negative for NWS. “The border closes, opens, closes, opens and then closes again. Every time, it has moved the market,” he adds.

Rogers hopes the border closure doesn’t last too long, because the Texas Panhandle is already suffering. “In the Hereford [Texas] area, beef is king. We need more cattle in the feedyards to help the grain companies and the packers, too. This will affect everyone and will end up costing the consumer,” he concludes.

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— Jennifer Carrico can be reached at jennifer.carrico@dtn.com

— Follow Jennifer on social platform X @JennCattleGal

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