Question Period Note: BOVINE TUBERCULOSIS

Q1 – What is the Canadian Food Inspection Agency doing to respond to the bovine tuberculosis situation? Q2 – Can bovine tuberculosis be spread to humans? Q3 – How is bovine tuberculosis controlled in Canada? Q4 – Are owners of cattle ordered to be disposed compensated by the federal government? Q5 – Are there any other types of financial support that producers could receive from the federal government?

R.1 - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is working on identifying and testing herds that are linked to the infected herds to prevent disease spread and attempt to identify a disease source.

The disease investigation process is extensive and will take at least 18 to 24 months to complete for each of the current three investigations underway. The case strains found in the infected herds are not related, nor are they a close match to any strain previously reported in livestock or wildlife in North America.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency engages with various stakeholders, including provincial Chief Veterinary Officers from Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba, including several provincial and federal cattle associations on a regular and ongoing basis. R.2 - Human cases of bovine tuberculosis are very rare.
Bovine tuberculosis does not pose a threat to public health in Canada because of the extremely low prevalence of the disease, as well as the Canada’s abattoir surveillance and testing programs, and practices.
Exposure can occur through the passage of fluids from an infected animal to an open skin sore, extended close contact with an animal with active respiratory tuberculosis or consuming raw or unpasteurized animal products (such as unpasteurized milk) from an infected animal. Milk pasteurization is an established and effective strategy to prevent transmission of tuberculosis to humans by milk. Sale of unpasteurized milk is not legal in Canada.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency imposes a quarantine on infected premises to prevent the spread of the disease and to help protect members of the public. R.3 - Bovine tuberculosis has been the subject of a mandatory national eradication program in Canada since 1923. The goal of the program is the early detection and complete eradication of bovine tuberculosis from livestock in Canada.

Ongoing surveillance in livestock is used to look for infections and maintains Canada’s international status as free of bovine tuberculosis.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s abattoir surveillance system looks for tuberculosis-like lesions in the lymph nodes and lungs of slaughtered animals. Abattoir surveillance is supplemented with live-animal testing, which is required for export to some countries.

If bovine tuberculosis is confirmed on a premises, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency alerts the provincial health authorities and implements strict disease eradication measures to eliminate the infection and prevent further spread to livestock, humans, and wildlife.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency also notifies any trading partners if exports of live animals have occurred from the positive premises within the past five years. This notification is an obligation under World Organization for Animal Health.
R.4 - Under the Health of Animals Act, the Minister has authority to order compensation to be paid to an owner whose animal has been ordered disposed. This compensation, which is paid from the Consolidated Revenue Fund, is not meant to provide full economic relief, rather it is intended to encourage disease reporting and owner cooperation in destruction efforts.

Owners are eligible to receive compensation for the market value of the animals ordered disposed and the disposal costs. The maximum compensation amounts for cattle were increased in June 2025. Registered (purebred) animals are now eligible for a maximum of $16,000 per animal (increased from $10,000) and non-registered animals are now eligible for a maximum of $10,000 per animal (increased from $4,500). R.5 - Livestock owners who receive compensation under the Health of Animals Act due to the ordered destruction of animals as a result of the bovine tuberculosis outbreak are eligible for Livestock Tax Deferral. This Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada program is a provision under the Income Tax Act that allows eligible livestock producers to defer the income from compensation payments to the following tax year. This will help to reduce the tax burden for affected producers as the income can be offset by the cost of purchasing replacement animals.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has initiated work with the livestock sector to examine potential changes to the Livestock Tax Deferral to further support affected producers as they face the challenge of rebuilding their herds.

Bovine tuberculosis (TB) is a chronic contagious bacterial disease of livestock, and occasionally other species of mammals, resulting from infection with Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis).

In countries with eradication programs such as Canada, advanced disease is rare as most cases are detected at an early stage when infection typically consists of few or small lesions in the respiratory system.
Few infections in Canada progress to the point of presenting clinical signs. However, when progressive disease does occur, the general signs are weakness, loss of appetite, weight-loss and fluctuating fever. When the lungs are extensively diseased, there can be an intermittent, hacking cough.

If bovine tuberculosis is confirmed on a premises, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) implements stamping out measures to eliminate the infection and prevent further spread.
These measures include:
• Implementing a quarantine and restricting the movement of animals and equipment
• Humane destruction of all infected and susceptible exposed animals
• Cleaning and disinfection of infected premises and equipment
• Investigation and testing of all at-risk livestock herds which are epidemiologically associated with the infected premises (tracing)
• Testing livestock and wildlife within a surveillance zone surrounding the infected premises
• Testing any livestock herds that are re-stocked onto a premises where bovine tuberculosis was previously confirmed
Bovine Tuberculosis Investigation
Canada is currently investigating three unrelated outbreaks of bovine TB in cattle: two in beef cattle (in two different Saskatchewan source herds with connections into Alberta) and one in dairy cattle (in Manitoba).

The CFIA ordered the herds with the infected animals to be destroyed, as well as individual animals from other sites. As of August 2025, a total of over 2,100 animals have been ordered to be disposed from the 2024 Saskatchewan investigation. The Manitoba index herd has been humanely depopulated. The 2023 Saskatchewan case testing is ongoing for proximity herds (within 5 km of the infected herd).

• The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is currently investigating three separate herds infected with bovine tuberculosis in the Prairie provinces.

• The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is testing herds linked to the infected ones to prevent disease spread and identify the source.

• The Government of Canada is committed to compensating producers that are ordered to dispose of their animals due to bovine tuberculosis.

• Bovine tuberculosis does not pose a threat to public health in Canada.