The brief

Analyst view

• First US domestic sterile fly facility at Moore Air Base, Texas. Groundbreaking April 2026; opening spring 2027.
• $750M facility will produce 100M sterile flies/week initially, scaling to 300M/week by end 2028.
• Sterile-insect technique: male sterile flies mate with wild females, producing no viable offspring, suppressing wild population.

Technical approach

As reported

Sterile-Insect Technique

Release of radiation-sterilized males

Male pupae are gamma-irradiated to render them sterile, then released. They mate with wild females, producing no viable offspring.

Scale Production

Controlled breeding in mass rearing facility

Moore Air Base facility breeds screwworm pupae in controlled conditions with precise temperature, humidity and diet control.

Containment Strategy

Coordinated releases across border regions

US facility coordinates with Panama and Mexico to produce 500M+ sterile flies weekly, creating a biological barrier.