Happy hens make happy eggs! Sounds like a cliché right, that's what I thought anyway.
I was invited to visit one of
The Happy Egg Co farms recently and drove there with a smirk on my face. Happy hens indeed!!
Well let me tell you these hens are the pampered princesses of the chicken world!
The hens are let out of their houses/barns first thing in the morning and come running out making a gleeful clucking noise, a really happy hen noise.
The hens are shut up again when it gets dark and this depends on the season, maybe around 15:30 in the winter but could be as late as 22:00 on a fine summer evening however during the time between coming out and evening curfew the hens are free to roam around a huge area and pop back inside as they want. They have trees for shelter outside in their large 'yard' area and food and drink whenever they want it in the hen house.
Inside their 'patio' area they have a dust bath area which also disinfects their feathers and keeps them free of little mites,
whilst in the actual hen house there is plenty of fresh water and feed so they can just help themselves and comfy, semi-private areas to lay their eggs.
A normal laying hen will lay one egg each day with a day off every now and then. The quality of the egg improves as they start getting older and their bodies get used to the hormonal changes they go through from 'teenage' hens to mature young ladies! You could say they have a 'henstral cycle'!
The Happy Egg Company follow strict environmental and health guidelines for their laying flocks diligently recording the yields compared to the feed and living conditions. These hens get the most intense feeding regime of the best chicken feed which is all made 'in house' to exacting specifications.
Before meeting the flock we were dressed in fetching gear and along with cameras went to the first hen house. (You will notice I am not showing me in this fetching outfit.)
We stood in a large open field with one of the flocks and it was a really enjoyable experience. They have a natural curiosity and were soon mingling around us.
The only thing that bothered them was when an airplane flew overhead and they all turned tail and ran back into their shelter only to re-emerge a few moments later when the 'threat' was gone!
I have had a really busy stressful life lately however standing inside of the hen house, listening to the happy 'mumble' and the excited laying noises I felt the most wonderful calmness I have had in a long time. I could have just sat there for hours soaking up all the happy, contented atmosphere, sitting with 'the girls' and maybe even clucking a bit to myself!
Following our farm tour we were treated to a wonderful meal produced by Jackson & Rye which of course featured The Happy Egg Co eggs in each course.
Canapes were Devilled Eggs
Our starter was Jackson & Rye egg Florentine and truffle Hollandaise sauce
Followed by a main course called Huevos rancheros but with poached eggs (sunny eggs, chorizo, avocado, spiced beans on a corn tortilla with a chipotle & tomato salsa and home style potatoes).
Our pudding was Jackson & Rye's signature pecan tart served with maple syrup rippled creme fraiche
Tired and full up we departed home with our box of The Happy Egg Co eggs and a new knowledge and understanding of 'happy hens'!
If you are interested to read some other accounts of the day see what my colleagues had to say:-
Kevin Chambers-Paston of
The Crafty Larder writes about his Scotch Egg following his visit.
Travels for Taste, Manjiri Chitnis learned loads about the life and times of a happy hen!
Alex Ryder of
Gingey Bites became knows as The Hen Whisperer after learning how to pick up a hen!
I was an invited guest of The Happy Egg Co and am not required to write a positive post. All photos are my own.
