Marksmen complete cull at B.C. ostrich farm, CFIA says

CBC News

· Posted: Nov 07, 2025 1:18 PM EST | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) said Friday that it has culled the ostrich colonisation connected a workplace successful Edgewood, B.C.

The announcement came a time aft the Supreme Court of Canada declined to perceive an entreaty to prevention the flock astatine Universal Ostrich Farms, wherever avian flu was detected past December.

The CFIA said successful a connection that aft consulting with experts, it concluded that “that the astir due and humane enactment was to usage nonrecreational marksmen successful a controlled on-farm setting.”

"All depopulation activities were completed nether CFIA veterinary supervision," the bureau said.

• For a afloat relationship of the communicative that unfolded astatine Universal Ostrich Farms aft the country's apical tribunal declined to perceive the farm's appeal, read CBC News' unrecorded sum here.

The CFIA ordered the cull of the farm's birds aft avian flu was detected successful the flock past December and killed 70 of the birds.

The CFIA estimated determination were 300 to 330 ostriches connected the workplace anterior to the cull.

WATCH | Ostrich cull complete, CFIA says:

The months-long saga sparked a statement astir perceived authorities overreach and mistrust successful authorities organizations, arsenic good arsenic mandates utilized to incorporate viruses.

The farm's owners had said the cull was unnecessary due to the fact that the flock was steadfast and had "herd immunity," making them invaluable for technological research, portion requesting that the birds beryllium re-tested for infection.

• Read much astir the inheritance of this case: How the destiny of a herd of ostriches connected a tiny B.C. workplace caught the attraction of the Trump administration.

The CFIA said ostriches that look steadfast tin inactive beryllium a imaginable root of the microorganism and allowing the flock to unrecorded accrued the hazard that the microorganism would dangerously mutate, peculiarly if the birds were exposed to wildlife.

The combat kicked disconnected a lengthy tribunal conflict that ended Thursday greeting erstwhile the Supreme Court of Canada declined to perceive a last entreaty from the farm's owners.

Some of the farm's ostriches pictured connected May 21. (Camille Vernet/Radio-Canada)

Supporters of the workplace expressed grief connected Friday morning.

A station connected a Facebook relationship appearing to beryllium to workplace proprietor Karen Espersen said determination were “no words that tin describe” however she and the farm’s supporters felt.

“Rest successful bid my feathered friends,” the station said. “This is simply a bittersweet time for Canada.”

RCMP said they volition stay connected tract astatine the CFIA's petition portion the bureau continues with "disposal" and "demobilization."

Police said determination were nary injuries oregon arrests during the "dynamic information of the CFIA operation."

Edgewood nonmigratory Brian Ewings told CBC News helium thinks it’s unfortunate that the cull took place, but is gladsome a determination was made.

He said astir of the residents he's spoken to felt the cull “had to beryllium done,” but noted that it has “divided” the community.

“It'll get backmost to normal, but there’ll beryllium immoderate radical that there's animosity, and it's bound to bent connected with a fewer people,” Ewings said.