The USDA New World Screwworm Grand Challenge represents the largest single funding opportunity for screwworm research and control technologies in decades. Applications are due February 23, 2026.
What's happening?
The New World Screwworm (NWS) is a flesh-eating fly endemic to the Americas that lays eggs in open wounds of warm-blooded animals. The larvae burrow into living flesh, consuming the host from inside. Infected animals experience excruciating pain, stop eating, and die slowly over days to weeks. This parasite occasionally infects humans too. NWS was previously eradicated from North and Central America, although containment efforts failed in 2024 and the parasite has reached Northern Mexico in January 2026.
New technologies like gene-drive-enhanced sterile insect technique (SIT) could make large-scale control and eradication faster and cheaper than ever before. The USDA Grand Challenge represents an opportunity to direct funding to developing technologies with potential applications beyond the United States southern border. Next-gen SIT and gene-drive could help extend the range of control and eradication to South America for the first time, safeguarding rural livelihoods and the wellbeing of hundreds of millions of animals.
Screwworm Free Future is supporting qualified applicants -- particularly those working in or with endemic regions in South America -- to develop competitive proposals that advance hemispheric control and eradication efforts
If you are a scientist or researcher working on any of the areas below, we may be interested in supporting your application:
Funding scope
Awards ≤$5M for projects completable within 2 years across four topics:
→ Topic 1: Sterile fly production enhancements (scalable SIT innovations, male-only strains)
→ Topic 2: Novel traps and lures (surveillance systems, AI-enabled detection)
→ Topic 3: Therapeutics and treatments (stockpilable treatments, vaccines, accessible formulations)
→ Topic 4: Preparedness and response tools (data-sharing platforms, surveillance protocols, economic models, rapid response frameworks)
Eligibility
Both U.S. and non-U.S. organizations are eligible. The USDA explicitly includes foreign organizations and non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations among eligible applicants.
What SFF can help with
We're engaging a U.S. grants and compliance consultant to support strategic applicants with:
→ Federal grants compliance (SAM.gov registration, ezFedGrants navigation, reporting requirements)
→ Application development (work plans, financial plans, SF-424 forms)
→ Alignment with USDA evaluation criteria
→ Budget structuring and indirect cost optimization
This support is provided at no cost to applicants whose projects advance hemispheric eradication goals.
Timeline
SAM.gov registration alone requires 10+ business days. To ensure adequate time for consultant engagement, contact SFF by Wed February 11, 2026.
Applications must address only ONE priority topic and are due February 23, 2026, 11:59 PM ET.
Contact: info@screwworm.org with information on your proposed scope of work.
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This is great news and good timing! A few days ago I was wondering what your org was up to.
I'm afraid I'm quite unqualified to do this screw worm research myself but please let me know if there's any other way I can support this effort
Gracias, David! We've had a busy last few months, focused on sharpening our strategic focus, devising a brand, commissioning and performing high-impact research, building relationships across the Americas - including with leading screwworm scientists - and onboarding our new Executive Director and core team. You can support our efforts right now by boosting this call, including on LinkedIn, or by sharing our Every.org donation page with people in your network who might be interested in learning more, or supporting us with resources. Thank you again!
Thanks for sharing.
Do you mean excruciating pain as defined by the Welfare Footprint Institute (WFI)? In this case, excruciating pain is "not normally tolerated even if only for a few seconds". Here is the clarification of what this means from Cynthia Schuck, WFI's scientific director.
Hi Vasco, thanks a lot for the comment, it's genuinely helping us improve a document we're working on.
To clarify: we're using the concept "excruciating" for two reasons: First of all, it is the term used in reports of human NWS infections, along with "severe". Secondly, we do think that in the most advanced stages of NWS infections, the pain experienced corresponds to what WFI defines as "excruciating", as animals will have big areas of innervated tissue being eaten by the larvae. In less advanced stages, it will correspond to what WFI defines as "disabling":
We're currently working with a team of researchers who are helping us elaborate a thorough CEA of the intervention, and this will be accurately captured, so SFF will have more detailed information about this soon.
Thanks for clarifying, Diego. I would be happy to review the cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) for free if you want.
Obrigado, Vasco! That's very generous of you. We appreciate your time and energy and will follow up with you.
- Team SFF