The Ontario Court of Appeal has overturned a court victory that struck down key parts of Ontario’s ag gag law, which made it illegal to expose widespread cruelty in farms and slaughterhouses.
The disappointing decision reinstates parts of the Security from Trespass and Protecting Food Safety Act—dangerous legislation passed by the Ontario government in 2020.
The law restricts the ability of journalists, animal advocates, and employee whistleblowers to document farmed animal abuse and other wrongdoing. The law makes it an offence to gain access to agricultural property under “false pretences,” targeting undercover exposés at farms and slaughterhouses.
Farm and slaughterhouse employees who witness cruelty to animals on the job and choose to document and expose the abuse can also face significant penalties.
The ruling overturns a landmark 2024 decision by the Ontario Superior Court, which found that significant portions of the law violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Animal Justice challenged Ontario’s ag gag law in court alongside journalist Jessica Scott-Reid and animal advocate Louise Jorgensen of Toronto Cow Save. Animal Justice lawyers, along with lawyers from Stockwoods LLP and McEwan Partners, fought at the Court of Appeal to defend animals and our constitutional right to free expression.
Photo: Jo-Anne McArthur | We Animals
Exposés Vital to Exposing Hidden Cruelty in Farms
In 2024, Canada slaughtered a staggering 863 million land animals for food. This number does not even include the millions of chicks slaughtered at hatcheries each year or horses slaughtered for food.
The vast majority of these animals endure lives of sheer misery and suffering in factory farms. Ag gag laws aim to keep that suffering out of public view.
Canadians are familiar with meat, dairy, and egg advertising showing animals in idyllic, grassy settings. But in reality, most animals are forced to live behind closed doors in crowded and windowless facilities. Oftentimes, they’re locked in tiny cages—especially if they are egg-laying hens, or mother pigs.
Canada has no national laws regulating the treatment of animals on farms, and lacks government oversight to protect the welfare of animals at these operations.
As a result, undercover investigations and employee whistleblowers have played a critical role in exposing animal cruelty that would otherwise remain completely hidden. In recent years, dozens of exposés have shown systemic suffering and illegal animal abuse in farms and slaughterhouses, with many leading to animal cruelty convictions.
Right before Ontario’s ag gag law came into force in 2020, Animal Justice conducted the last legal undercover exposé in the province, showing caged pregnant pigs in a filthy factory farm, and shocking illegal abuse.
The footage showed pigs being kicked and beaten, piglets being castrated and having their sensitive tails sliced off without pain relief, and an illegal c-section conducted on a live, conscious pig. After the footage was released, the farm pleaded guilty to two animal cruelty offenses.
Other Ontario exposés have shown animal suffering at turkey farms, chick hatcheries, and mink fur farms. Without these investigations, many cases of animal abuse and neglect would likely never come to light.
Animal Justice’s Fight Continues to Stop Ag Gag Laws
While Animal Justice is disappointed by this outcome, our lawyers are seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Ag gag laws threaten both animal protection and fundamental constitutional freedoms. Similar laws in the US have repeatedly been struck down by courts, with judges in six states ruling them unconstitutional.
Ontario is not alone in enacting ag gag legislation. Alberta passed a similar law in 2019, and Manitoba and Prince Edward Island also have laws designed to conceal cruelty to farmed animals.
Animal Justice remains committed to challenging ag gag laws across Canada. We have opposed these laws in provincial and federal legislatures, challenged them in court, and will continue doing everything we can to defeat them.
Banner: Balvik C. | We Animals
