Grant from ACX Grants 2025
6
Screwworm Free Future: Seizing the Eradication Window
The screwworm barrier has collapsed. We have 12-18 months to coordinate a hemispheric response.
In September 2025, screwworm was detected in Mexico, 70 miles from the US border. The Panama biological barrier that kept this flesh-eating parasite out of North America for two decades has failed. USDA just announced a $100M innovation fund. For the first time in a generation, continental eradication is politically viable.
The problem
The New World Screwworm is a flesh-eating fly that lays eggs in open wounds. The larvae burrow into living flesh, consuming the host from the inside. Infected animals experience excruciating pain, stop eating, and die slowly over days to weeks. The suffering is immense - we know this because screwworm occasionally infects humans too.
This happens to hundreds of millions of animals every year across South America. The annual economic cost is $3.5-7 billion in livestock losses alone. The suffering inflicted on wild animals is unquantified but likely orders of magnitude larger.
Screwworm was eliminated from the US and Central America using sterile insect technique in the 1960s and into the early 2000s. South America was left behind due to coordination failures between governments and lack of international support.
Why now
The barrier collapsed. Screwworm is moving north toward US agricultural interests, creating unprecedented political will. USDA committed $100M, but it's focused on border defense, not hemispheric elimination. New technologies like gene-drive-enhanced SIT could make eradication many multiples faster and cheaper.
Without coordination, countries will act defensively. South America remains infested. The US spends billions on perpetual containment. Hundreds of millions of animals continue to die in agony.
What we will do
Screwworm Free Future coordinates the scientific, economic, and political requirements for continental suppression leading towards eradication. Founded by volunteers, we are the only organization working full-time on screwworm elimination advocacy.
Since founding in 2024, we have established relationships with agricultural officials across a number of South American countries, met with USDA, published in the Washington Post, hired our first full-time Executive Director, and secured ~80% partial funding (including from ACX grants) for a minimum viable project year.
Our theory of change: eradication requires multiple countries to commit simultaneously. No one is doing the coordination work. We are filling that gap.
Concretely, SFF will:
Evaluate the viability of continent-wide screwworm eradication approaches, mapping the technical, economic, and political requirements for Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) and gene drives.
Build relationships with politicians, public servants, and industry across South America, and facilitate coordination across countries of which there currently is little.
Why this matters
Scale: Hundreds of millions of animals infected annually, each suffering days to weeks of intense pain - significant economic costs.
Neglectedness: We are the only organization advocating for coordinated South American eradication.
Tractability: Screwworm was previously eliminated from its historical range in North America in the 1960s and early 2000s. We know it is technically feasible; and newer approaches, like gene-drive, are likely faster and cheaper. Barrier is political coordination.
Accelerating eradication by one year would spare hundreds of millions of animals while generating billions in economic value. We believe our cost-effectiveness is on par with top animal welfare interventions, with higher upside for other disease areas if gene drives prove safe and viable at scale.
Our team
The project started in the wake of a series of online articles arguing for the impact and feasibility of eradicating the New World Screwworm in 2024. A group formed shortly after to pursue research questions and meet with experts and policy makers to clarify political feasibility. The project has quickly gathered momentum.
In September 2025, SFF recruited Maximillian Seunik, a public-health scientist and nonprofit leader with a record of mobilizing funding and policy momentum for neglected health and disease areas, as Executive Director.
Max was recruited through an international search led by Charity Entrepreneurship alumni. Our Board includes experts from Rethink Priorities, policymakers, senior advisors from the animal welfare movement, and global health experts. The organization is supported by a team of highly-skilled volunteers in South America and globally with backgrounds in public sector engagement, data science, and academia.
What would you do if not funded?
Advocacy slows by 12+ months. We miss the political window. USDA allocates $100M to border defense instead of hemispheric elimination. Key questions around economic modelling, prevalence, and elimination feasibility go unanswered. Screwworm remains endemic. Hundreds of millions of animals continue to suffer. This is the most important moment for screwworm suppression in 20 years.
How much money do you need?
We have revised our Year 1 budget to $305,471 to reflect the expanded political opportunity. This enables us to:
Hire economic impact modellers (rather than relying on volunteer labor) to produce the rigorous country-specific analyses that persuade policymakers
Conduct intensive government engagement in the US and key South American countries where elimination readiness is highest
Develop our organizational brand and communications capacity
With $50K from ACX Grants and other secured funding, we have a remaining gap of $56,339. This specifically covers contractors embedded in South American countries for direct government and industry engagement.
As of November 2025, we have partnered with a 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor to facilitate tax-deductible receipts for US donors. For larger donations or questions about our full budget, contact us directly at contact@screwworm.org.