Supreme Court decision to determine future of B.C. ostrich flock amid avian flu dispute

The fate of more than 300 ostriches in British Columbia’s southern Interior could be decided within days, as the Supreme Court of Canada prepares to rule on whether it will hear a final appeal from Universal Ostrich Farms.

The Edgewood-based operation has spent nearly a year fighting a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) order to cull its flock following an avian influenza outbreak last December. The farm has already lost two earlier legal battles in Federal Court and the Federal Court of Appeal.

In September, the Supreme Court temporarily halted the cull while it considered whether to hear the case. If the court declines, the CFIA would be free to proceed with the destruction order, ending the farm’s efforts to keep the birds alive.

The farm’s owners have argued that the CFIA’s policy of automatically destroying infected flocks is outdated and that their ostriches have developed a form of herd immunity. The CFIA maintains that even apparently healthy birds can carry and spread the virus, which has devastated poultry operations across the country in recent years.

The case has attracted international attention, including from U.S. environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who urged Canadian authorities to spare the ostriches for their scientific and genetic value. Supporters have also gathered at the farm to oppose the potential cull.

The CFIA currently has custody of the flock. The farm’s owners claim they were unlawfully removed from their property by agency officials and the RCMP earlier this year.