Cull of BC Ostriches Can Go Ahead, Federal Court of Appeal Rules

A sign calling for the protection of ostriches at the Universal Ostrich Farms is displayed at the farm in Edgewood, B.C., on May 17, 2025. The Canadian Press/Aaron Hemens

The Federal Court of Appeal has declined an application from a B.C. ostrich farm for another stay order against a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) cull order for its 400 birds.

Universal Ostrich Farms in Edgewood, B.C., was ordered by the CFIA in December 2024 to cull its flock of ostriches after the agency said that 69 birds died of a “flu-like illness” and testing showed two of the birds had H5N1, or avian flu.

The farm has said that its animals have recovered from the virus and have immunity and are being used for research. It has filed a legal challenge against the cull order, but the Federal Court upheld CFIA’s order in a June decision. The farm owners appealed that ruling, but the Federal Court of Appeal rejected the application in August. The farm owners previously applied for a judicial review of the CFIA order but the request was denied.

A stay order was granted to the farm on Sept. 6, with the appeal court saying the interim order would remain until the stay motion was decided “on the basis of a full record.”

In a Sept. 12 decision, Justice Gerald Heckman said the farm failed to establish any “serious or arguable issue” for the case to be heard by the Supreme Court of Canada.

Heckman said that he did have sympathy for the farmers, but added they had been given “full and meaningful opportunity” to challenge the CFIA order and had not been successful.

The ruling also said that the farm did not establish that the harm it would suffer outweighed the public interest if a stay were granted.

“The CFIA must now be allowed to discharge the mandate conferred on it by Parliament and implement its lawful policy,” Justice Heckman said.

He added that the farm did not successfully establish grounds for a further appeal but added that he understood the “emotional bonds” that can develop between people and the animals they care for.

“Judges don’t have hearts of stone,” Heckman said. “We recognize the hard work and sacrifice that go into establishing a business and the pride a business owner feels in this achievement. I have sympathy for the appellant’s principals, who are facing difficult circumstances.”

‘Next Steps’

Farm spokesperson Katie Pasitney said the decision means the Sept. 6 interim stay order “no longer exists.”

She said they were trying to figure out the next steps.

“But in these next steps, we have an open cull order,” she said in a Sept. 12 video posted to the farm’s Facebook page.

Pasitney said that in the last order, it was “very clear” that the CFIA “could continue to plan the execution of all of these animals that are living here, breathing healthy with heartbeats, and when those heartbeats are gone, those heartbeats don’t come back.”

The Epoch Times attempted to reach the CFIA but did not hear back by publication time.

The agency previously said the B.C. farm’s herd poses a threat to humans and animals. It said that the type of avian flu found in the birds contains a genotype tied to a human infection of a poultry worker in Ohio. It said this raises concerns of a mutation of the virus.

CFIA told The Epoch Times in June that testing at the National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease determined the ostriches infected had a highly pathogenic avian influenza, saying “the current [highly pathogenic avian influenza] infection in these ostriches is a novel reassortment not seen elsewhere in Canada.”

The agency said that its “disease response” aims to protect public and animal health. It added that the response also seeks to minimize the economic impact on Canada’s poultry sector.

US Officials

The cull order has received attention from U.S. officials, including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who asked the CFIA to reconsider the order. He also called for a U.S.-Canadian collaborative research project to study the animals’ immune response to avian flu.

Former TV personality Dr. Mehmet Oz, who is now the administrator of the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, has said he would relocate the birds to his ranch in Florida.

U.S. billionaire John Catsimatidis has said that he and another individual have contributed about US$35,000 to the farm’s legal fight over the cull order.

Dozens of supporters from across Canada have been gathering at the farm since before the summer.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.