How to Stop the Ostrich Cull and CFIA’s Overreach

Regulatory capture, political influence and industry favoritism shows that CFIA’s priorities are no longer aligned with the interests of Canadian farmers or consumers.

In recent years, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has drawn increasing attention, but not for its role in ensuring food safety. Instead, it is becoming known for using food safety regulations as a tool to eliminate competition, consolidate power, and push a corporate-driven agenda. Originally created to safeguard food and animal health, CFIA has increasingly acted as an instrument of industrial consolidation. Small farms are being burdened with harsh regulations, while large agribusinesses often escape without consequence.

One of the most glaring examples of CFIA’s overreach occurred in 2022, when the agency ordered the culling of healthy ostriches on multiple farms across Canada. This action raised serious questions about CFIA’s true motives, as there were no confirmed cases of avian influenza in any of the ostriches. Instead, the culling was justified as a precautionary biosecurity measure due to proximity to infected poultry zones. However, several red flags made it clear that this wasn’t about disease control:

• No testing was done on the ostriches before they were culled.

• No clinical signs of illness were observed.

• Many farms had strict biosecurity protocols, better than some industrial ops.

• Ostriches are not natural carriers of flu - low susceptibility in scientific studies.

• Farmers were not compensated for loss - no appeal process or transparency.

For the farmers affected, this was a blow to their livelihoods, “a death sentence” delivered without evidence, fairness or accountability. This wasn’t about protecting public health; it was about pushing out small, non-industrial farms that don’t fit the mass-market, export-driven model that CFIA seems to favor.

The ostrich culling incident fits into a troubling pattern of CFIA actions that disproportionately target small producers. At the same time, large agribusinesses receive leniency or outright immunity from regulations. Small farms face frequent inspections, fines and shutdowns for even minor violations. In contrast, large corporations benefit from self-regulation, voluntary compliance programs and delayed enforcement. A notable example of this double standard can be seen in the 2012 XL Foods E. coli outbreak, which sickened over 1,800 people. CFIA delayed a recall for weeks to avoid disrupting U.S. beef exports, and no executives faced charges. The plant reopened with minimal changes.

CFIA’s revolving door between industry and government adds to the concern. Former CFIA officials often take high-ranking roles at major food corporations such as Cargill, Maple Leaf Foods and Bayer. Industry lobbyists also sit on CFIA’s advisory committees, giving them influence over decisions that should prioritize public health and fairness. This close relationship between regulators and industry giants results in a system where the rules are written to benefit the largest players, not the smaller, independent producers.

Even more concerning is CFIA’s growing alignment with international trade agreements, often at the expense of local food security. During the Mad Cow Disease crisis, CFIA was quick to reopen export markets, despite ongoing health concerns. Today, the agency enforces international standards such as Codex Alimentarius, which favor industrial-scale production and make it harder for small farms to compete. As a result, small, diversified farms are treated as outliers, while large-scale operations are considered essential to Canada’s food infrastructure.

The ostrich culling is part of a larger trend to undermine alternative, decentralized agriculture in favor of centralized, export-focused models. Small farms, especially those with niche products, are increasingly pushed out of the market as CFIA places burdensome regulations on them while relaxing standards for large corporations. This regulatory bias is pushing Canada’s food system towards greater corporate control, sidelining the very farmers who help build resilient, localized food economies.

CFIA’s actions highlight a growing problem: the agency has moved from being a regulator of public health to an enforcer of globalist trade priorities, aiding the consolidation of Canada’s food supply into the hands of a few large corporations. This shift favors corporate profits over public health, local food security, and the livelihoods of independent farmers.

The broader trend of regulatory capture, political influence and industry favoritism shows that CFIA’s priorities are no longer aligned with the interests of Canadian farmers or consumers. Instead, they are aligned with the goals of multinational agribusinesses and global trade policies. By pushing small producers out of the market, CFIA is helping to create a more centralized food system that benefits large corporations, while making it more difficult for independent, local farms to survive.

This pattern of overreach and bias is not just an issue for the farmers affected, it’s a threat to Canada’s food sovereignty. As the system becomes more centralized, the country’s food security becomes more dependent on a few large players who are primarily concerned with profits, not the well-being of the public or the environment. If the current trends continue, it won’t be long before the majority of Canada’s food supply is controlled by a small number of corporations, leaving local farmers and consumers at their mercy.

The time has come for Canadian citizens to question the direction CFIA is taking. It’s essential to hold the agency accountable for its actions, demand transparency and push back against the growing trend of corporate control over our food system. The future of Canada’s food security depends on it.

Let’s Cut Through the Noise - How to Fight Back!

We’re not just trying to save a flock of ostriches, we’re fighting a system that uses the guise of biosecurity to eliminate competition, silence innovation and centralize control over Canada’s food supply. CFIA has positioned itself as the gatekeeper of food safety, but its actions increasingly reveal a deeper agenda: protect the export-driven, industrial agriculture complex at all costs, even if it means destroying healthy animals, crushing independent farmers and suppressing scientific evidence that doesn’t fit the narrative. The culling order against Universal Ostrich Farms is not an isolated overreach; it is a calculated enforcement of a policy framework designed to marginalize small, diversified and non-conventional farms while shielding large agribusinesses from accountability. The fact that nearly 400 ostriches, asymptomatic for over eight months, with no confirmed live virus transmission, are facing extermination based solely on outdated PCR tests, from dead birds months prior, exposes a catastrophic failure of both science and justice. This is not disease control. This is regulatory authoritarianism masked as public service.

PCR (polymerase chain reaction) technology is a highly sensitive tool, but it is not, on its own, a definitive measure of active or contagious disease. The CDC and leading public health agencies have acknowledged that PCR tests, particularly when run at high cycle threshold (Ct) values, can detect non-infectious viral fragments long after a person or animal has recovered. Kary Mullis, the inventor of PCR, consistently emphasized that the technique was designed to amplify DNA, not to diagnose illness without clinical context. Using PCR results in isolation, without confirmation through symptom assessment, viral culture, or histopathology, risks false assumptions about transmission risk. In the case of healthy ostriches showing no clinical signs for months, a cull based solely on outdated PCR positives, without confirmatory testing for live virus, contradicts both scientific rigor and international animal health standards set by the WOAH. Relying on such flawed interpretation does not protect biosecurity, it undermines it, replacing evidence-based policy with fear-driven overreach.

The scientific foundation of the cull is fundamentally flawed, and that is our strongest legal weapon. The CFIA based its entire justification on two positive PCR tests from deceased birds in December 2024, without conducting confirmatory diagnostics such as virus isolation, histopathology, or necropsy, the gold standards recognized by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). PCR tests detect genetic fragments, not live, infectious virus, and can remain positive long after a pathogen has been cleared from the body. The absence of clinical signs in the flock since January 2025, combined with their isolation from commercial poultry operations, proves that the outbreak was contained and resolved. By relying solely on PCR, CFIA violated its own international obligations under WOAH’s Terrestrial Code, which explicitly states that confirmation of infection requires evidence of viable virus in tissues. We must file a formal legal challenge asserting that the CFIA’s decision was patently unreasonable and ultra vires, beyond its legal authority, because it was not grounded in valid scientific evidence. Hire an independent veterinary virologist to submit an affidavit demonstrating this gap, and demand the Supreme Court recognize that destroying a healthy, non-communicative flock based on obsolete testing protocols is arbitrary, unlawful, and a violation of procedural fairness.

Beyond the science, we must dismantle the policy itself. CFIA’s “stamping out” doctrine, automatic mass culling upon any positive test, is a blunt instrument designed for industrial-scale outbreaks, not rare, isolated, non-commercial flocks like Universal Ostrich Farms. This farm is not a poultry operation; it is a genetic conservation and research facility with a 30-year breeding program and international scientific partnerships, including with Kyoto Prefectural University, aimed at developing antibodies from ostrich eggs to combat avian influenza in humans and animals. The CFIA dismissed this potential without review, refused to grant an exemption under Section 32 of the Health of Animals Act, and revoked the farm’s “distinct unit” status, which once recognized its separation from commercial supply chains, without explanation or appeal. This is not just negligence; it is active suppression of innovation. We must reframe the narrative: this is not a farmer resisting regulation, but a steward of rare genetics and a contributor to public health science being silenced by a bureaucracy that fears anything outside its control. File a Charter challenge under Section 7, life, liberty and security of the person, arguing that the forced destruction of a livelihood and scientific asset without due process violates fundamental justice.

Now, go after the system. Use Access to Information requests to expose the truth behind the closed doors of CFIA. Demand all internal emails related to the ostrich case, including communications with the Poultry Farmers of Canada, the Canadian Hatching Egg Producers, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Find out if trade pressure influenced the cull decision. Demand records on the revocation of the “distinct unit” status and whether the promised “rare genetics” exemption was denied due to political or corporate interference. Uncover the revolving door: obtain lists of former CFIA officials now employed by Cargill, Maple Leaf Foods, or Bayer, and current industry executives sitting on CFIA advisory boards. This is not conspiracy, it is accountability. When we reveal that the same people who once regulated the system now profit from it, we expose regulatory capture in plain sight. Publish these findings. Make them undeniable.

Launch a national public campaign that reframes this case as a symbol of farmer oppression and systemic corruption. This is no longer just about ostriches, it’s about who controls Canada’s food future. Brand it as “The Ostrich Rebellion”, a stand against centralized power, corporate overreach and the erasure of independent agriculture. Recruit allies across the political and social spectrum: groups fighting government overreach, advocates for biodiversity, Indigenous food sovereignty leaders who understand colonial control of land and life, and sustainable farmers who know they’re next. Organize rallies at Parliament Hill, outside CFIA headquarters, and in rural communities. Get farmers across the country to post videos declaring, “If they can destroy hundreds of healthy ostriches with no due process, they can come for your goats, chickens, or bees next.” This is about the right to exist outside the industrial food machine.

Simultaneously, weaponize international science and diplomacy. Secure affidavits from globally respected virologists and wildlife health experts who can testify that ostriches are not amplifying hosts for H5N1 and that mass culling of asymptomatic ratites violates international risk-based guidelines. Partner with Kyoto Prefectural University to issue a formal statement: “The destruction of these birds eliminates a unique opportunity for cross-species medical research with global implications.” Request intervention from Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture or its embassy in Canada, this is now an international scientific asset at risk. If a foreign government questions Canada’s scientific integrity, it becomes a diplomatic liability, not just a domestic dispute. CFIA cannot hide behind “global standards” while ignoring the very international science it claims to uphold.

Then, escalate to the constitutional level. Challenge Section 66.b of the Health of Animals Act, which criminalizes independent testing with fines up to $200,000 and six months in jail. This is not biosecurity, it is scientific censorship. File a Charter challenge under Section 2(b), freedom of expression, arguing that the state cannot suppress scientific inquiry and public knowledge under the guise of disease control. Hire a private lab, inside or outside Canada, to analyze stored samples, feathers, or eggs for viral shedding and antibody presence. Publish the results. Say clearly: “CFIA won’t let science speak. We will.” This turns CFIA from a regulator into a censor, and censors are not trusted.

Section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees freedom of expression, including the right to access and share information in the public interest. The Supreme Court has consistently ruled that this includes scientific research, data, and public discourse, citing cases like Irwin Toy, R. v. National Post, and Grant v. Torstar. Section 66.1 of the Health of Animals Regulations violates this right by making it a criminal offence for farmers to conduct or share independent tests for diseases like avian influenza, carrying penalties of up to $250,000 and two years in prison. This amounts to state censorship of scientific truth, especially when such data could prove animals are healthy and pose no risk. Suppressing independent evidence to justify mass culling is not biosecurity, it is control through silence. While the government may claim the law is justified under Section 1 to protect animal health, a blanket ban on testing is disproportionate. Less restrictive alternatives exist, such as requiring reporting of results. A Charter challenge under Section 2(b) is legally sound and morally urgent. It affirms that in Canada, the right to know, to test, and to speak truth to power, especially in science and agriculture, must not be sacrificed to regulatory overreach.

Next, attack CFIA’s mandate and funding. File a formal petition to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food demanding a full parliamentary review of CFIA’s culling policies, an independent audit of its reliance on PCR-only diagnostics, and a public inquiry into regulatory capture via the revolving door. Demand transparency: how many culls since 2020 were based on PCR alone? How many involved species with low transmission risk? How many had viable alternatives like quarantine or vaccination? Force MPs to confront the reality that CFIA is not protecting public health, it is protecting export markets and corporate interests. Get sympathetic politicians to raise this in Question Period. Make it politically dangerous to defend CFIA’s actions.

Finally, prepare your endgame legal maneuver. Even if the Supreme Court denies leave to appeal, file a new application in Federal Court under Rule 308 for relief based on new evidence, including months of health logs, third-party scientific affidavits, proof of immunity, and evidence of CFIA’s refusal to engage with research potential. Argue that proceeding with the cull now would be an act of cruelty, scientific vandalism and administrative overreach. Request an injunction to permanently halt the cull while the court reviews this new material. At the same time, launch a “Freedom Farm” legal defense fund to cover bail, legal fees, lab testing and media outreach. Produce a viral video titled “They’re Not Sick. They’re Dangerous.”, showing healthy ostriches running free, followed by a voiceover: “They test negative. They show no symptoms. They’ve lived eight months without spreading disease. So why does the government want them dead? Because they prove something terrifying to the system: we don’t need corporate agriculture to feed the world.” Distribute it across independent media, social platforms, and international networks.

The truth is, CFIA doesn’t fear courts, it fears exposure. It fears ridicule. It fears losing legitimacy. Your goal is not just to win in court, but to make CFIA lose so publicly, so completely, that they cannot afford to enforce the cull even if they win on paper. Turn this farm into a symbol. Turn these birds into icons of resistance. And when the world sees Canada destroying healthy, intelligent, rare animals based on a broken test and a corrupt system, the pressure will become unbearable. They may have the guns, the hazmat suits, and the arrest warrants, but we have the truth, the science, and the moral high ground. and in the end, that’s what will force the system to blink. They can issue cull orders, send in the RCMP, and hide behind bureaucratic procedure, but they cannot withstand the weight of undeniable truth. We have healthy birds, sound science, global support and a public that increasingly sees through the overreach. When the world realizes that Canada is poised to destroy a rare, immune, scientifically valuable flock based on a decades-old test result with no evidence of ongoing risk, the backlash will be unstoppable. This is not just about saving ostriches. It’s about reclaiming the right to farm, to innovate and to live free from authoritarian control disguised as regulation. Stand firm. The tide is turning, and history will remember who stood on the side of life.

They’re Coming for More Than Ostriches, Are We Ready?

This is where courage meets action, where farmers, scientists and citizens stand together to defend truth, science and the right to grow, raise and know what’s on our plates. The fight to save Canada’s ostriches is not just about birds, it’s about who controls our food, our farms and our freedom. Now is the time to clean up regulatory overreach, challenge corrupted systems and build a future where independent farmers and innovative research are protected, not punished. Learn more - take a stand for food sovereignty, transparency and justice: https://saveourostriches.com/about/

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. The information provided is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Always consult a qualified legal professional for advice specific to your situation.