Police tape lines the perimeter of the Universal Ostrich Farms in Edgewood, B.C., on Sept. 22, 2025. The Canadian Press/Aaron Hemens
RCMP say they made a third arrest at the B.C. ostrich farm that has been at the centre of a legal battle over a cull order for its more than 300 birds.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has been at Universal Ostrich Farms since September, following a federal appeals court decision that upheld a cull order for the birds at the farm that the agency issued in December 2024, after two of the birds tested positive for avian flu. Between Dec. 15, 2024, and Jan. 15, 2025, 69 of the ostriches on the farm died after becoming sick. The owners argue the birds are healthy, have immunity to the virus, and have scientific value.
