Court dismisses application to stop B.C. ostrich cull over avian flu

A Federal Court judge has tossed out a challenge that would have stopped the killing of about 400 ostriches on a British Columbia farm that suffered an outbreak of avian flu.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency ordered the cull late last year after the avian flu outbreak, but the court granted a stay in January pending a judicial review.

The family that owns the farm has said the birds should be saved because they have developed herd immunity and could contribute to the fight against avian flu.

However, the court ruled today that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's decisions were both reasonable and procedurally fair, with the judge noting that "courts generally stay out of scientific debates."

The owners of the farm say the birds that survived the flu have recovered and are happy and healthy.

More than 8.7 million birds have been culled in B.C. at hundreds of farms, most of them commercial, since the first outbreak of a highly contagious form of the avian flu broke out in the spring of 2022.