The New York billionaire, avid supporter of US President Donald Trump, says he is funding a legal battle by the British Columbia Ostritch Farm over an order to cull a flock of around 400 birds following the outbreak of avian flu.
John Katosimatidis says he and his friends donated about USD 35,000 to a legal battle by Universal Ostritch Farm in Edgewood inside BC to stop the ull ordered by the Canadian Food Testing Agency.
Catsimatidis says in an interview that co-owner's daughter, Katie Pasitney, heard about the farm when he called the New York radio station he owned.
He says he is more interested in the more he hears about the situation on the farm, and he will reach out to US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and US health official Dr. Mehmet Oz.
Catsimatidis, who Trump called a longtime friend, says the president is also aware of the incident that Kennedy raised with him.
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He says if roles are reversed, there will be no problem with wealthy Canadians trying to influence US policies.
“I think there are only one Canadians and one American people. We are dependent on each other. We have always been dependent on each other.
He called for the iconic ancient animals worthy of life for ostriches.
Catsimatidis holds weekly shows on WABC, a radio station purchased in 2020, and is best known as the owner of New York City supermarket chain Gristedes.
The 76-year-old is CEO of Red Apple Group of Companies, which includes oil refineries and real estate ownership, and has a net worth of US$4.5 billion by Forbes Magazine, making him the 875th wealthiest person in the world.
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Catsimatidis held a press conference with Pasitney and Oz on Monday. He spoke about his financial contribution to the legal costs of farm owners who are looking to bring the case to Canada's Supreme Court after the appeals court last week upheld the cull order.
“I think these animals deserve to live, and if they're killed, we're not going to end it. There's a massive investigation into why they're in a hurry to kill these animals,” said Katamatidis, whose daughter Andrea Katosimatidis, chairman of the Manhattan Republican Party.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency ordered ull during the H5N1 flu outbreak in December, killing 69 ostriches on the farm that month and January.
Farm supporters argue that surviving birds are no longer a threat and can be used for research, but agents argue that ull is needed as exposed flocks create opportunities for the virus to mutate.
Oz, a former television personality and surgeon who is now the administrator of the US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, says that birds should be spared as they can hold secrets about the avian flu, and offered to live birds on a ranch in Florida.
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