Hatching egg seller Belinda Burgess

Belinda Burgess tried having a regular job. She tried retiring. Neither stuck. 

Despite 12 hour days, 7 days a week, she says running a commercial poultry farm is a good job, a passion. Therapy, even.

She sells 30-40+ dozen eggs per week at the height of the season, and hatches hundreds of chicks per week. She sells year-round. 

Ask her how many breeds she keeps and she'll have to check. 

In this conversation, Belinda is beautifully candid. She shares what it’s really like selling hatching eggs as a business — the ups and downs and some of her major learnings along the way.

Whether it’s leg banding baby chicks at midnight or packing eggs at dawn…this chat will give you a feel for what it takes to build a successful operation.

Topics discussed include: 

• How much Belinda pays per week in feed
• The problem with hatching pullet eggs
• Her most popular breeds
• Why she's phasing out her chicken tractors
• How she ended up with silken Araucanas
• How to breed stronger chickens
• How she accidentally killed 2 of her best hens with scratch mix 
• ILT (infectious laryngotracheitis) and how her birds tested positive for it without having the disease
• Marek’s disease
• Quarantining birds
• Challenges in dealing with egg customers
• Her advice to someone considering starting an egg business