‘We're going to continue to fight:' B.C. ostrich farm to fight case to cull its herd in Federal Court of Appeal
A B.C. ostrich farm that lost dozens of birds following an avian flu outbreak last winter will be fighting in the Federal Court of Appeal in Ottawa on Tuesday to stop an order to cull the remainder of its herd.
Today's hearing marks the latest development in a legal battle by Universal Ostrich Farm, located near Edgewood, B.C., to save its birds.
'We're going to continue to fight with all that we have,' Katie Pasitney, the daughter of the farm owners, said in an interview with CTV News before the hearing. 'It is very real that if we are not guaranteed Supreme Court, if we don't make it here, we will be applying for Supreme Court.'
After an avian flu outbreak was detected at the farm last December, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) ordered the farm to cull its remaining herd of approximately 400 birds by Feb. 1, under its 'stamping out' policy, which aims to minimize risk to human health.
The agency says the farm has not complied with the Health of Animals Act by failing to report the initial cases of illness and deaths to the CFIA, failing to adhere to quarantine orders and failing to undertake risk mitigation measures.
In a statement on its website in May, the CFIA says, 'Given that the flock has had multiple laboratory-confirmed cases of H5N1 and the ongoing serious risks for animal and human health and trade, the CFIA continues planning for humane depopulation with veterinary oversight at the infected premises.'
The farm owners argue the remainder of their herd is healthy and have fought for additional and independent testing.
According to a website dedicated to saving the ostriches, Karen Espersen and Dave Bilinski, who have owned and worked on the farm for more than 30 years, stopped producing meat at the farm in 2020 and have shifted their focus to research.
'Science is meant to evolve. Policy is meant to evolve, and that's all we're asking is that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency gives us an offer or an option to research these animals more and prove to the Canadians that they are healthy,' Pasitney said.
Asked by CTV News why the farm does not trust the expertise of the CFIA, Pasitney says, 'We have experts as well and we have scientific experts, a large panel of them that have really great qualifications.'
Following the order to cull the herd, the farm applied for an exemption for animals with rare genetics because of the antibody research they conduct, but the CFIA denied that application on Jan. 10.
The farm then applied to the Federal Court for a judicial review of the CFIA's order, but in May, the judge ruled in favour of the CFIA, saying the cull was reasonable and procedurally fair.
The Federal Court of Appeal later denied the farm's request for independent testing on June 20 and ordered Tuesday's expedited appeal. The hearing is scheduled for one day.
In a statement to CTV News, the CFIA says the agency 'looks forward to a resolution that allows for the continued implementation of its regulatory response, which aims to protect public and animal health, and minimize impacts on the domestic poultry industry and the Canadian economy.'
With files from The Canadian Press
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