A few months after buying the flower farm in Clifden another opportunity popped up. Hens at Clifden came up for sale. As we now had 10 acres in Clifden, and not all of it in flowers, we thought this could just be the thing for us. We liked the idea of giving back to the land and we liked hens. After a visit at Hens at Clifden and a chat with the owner, we quickly came to an arrangement. A few weeks later we moved the coop up the road to our flower farm. We scaled it back to 99 hens while we were working out what this eggventure would look like for us. It wasn’t until about eight months later that we decided to grow our egg business and to free-range more hens in the way that we think free-range should be. We ordered 400 hens and started looking at all the paperwork and boxes that needed to be ticked by MPI and council. We still had about three months to get all this in place.
And that is when another opportunity popped up, Red Feather Eggs came up for sale. This time around we were looking at three coops and some handy equipment. We liked the idea that we could work towards a position where Cameron can finish up working for someone else and setting up an egg business where hens are truly free-range, living their best lives. After a visit at Red Feather Eggs and a chat to the owner, again, we quickly came to an arrangement. A few weeks later we moved the three coops to the Grove Burn farm in Tuatapere, as now, the flower farm was too small to farm the hens the way we saw fit. Shortly after that the other coop also moved up the Grove Burn. It definitely shortened our three month timeframe on the paperwork but we put our office caps on and got it done. We are MPI registered and verified. We are now officially Egg producers! Hip Hip Hooray!
As our ventures have grown from blooms to beaks we thought it would only be appropriate to keep our trading name in line with what we have already grown to be known. Beaks and Boulders is the newest addition to our Boulder family.
Now this does not mean all is honkey dory, as with hens there is an insane amount of learning to be done with lots of it only to be learned by running into it. So, lots of bridges crossed and still lots more to cross. This is an ongoing eggventure which I doubt we’ll ever 100% figure out. There are way too many variables which keeps us on our toes! We wouldn’t want Cameron to get bored now would we?
What does ‘free-ranging’ mean to you? What does this look like?
Free-range to us is the literal meaning of free-range, not a number of hens per square meter. Our hens are free to go however far they want to go. There are no fences, beside the boundary fence, hence their range is free – free as a bird! They are safely locked in at night when they are most vulnerable, and they are free to roam again in the morning. They spend their days out on the pasture, scratching and dust bathing. The coops are all mobile and moved regularly to spread their fertilizer all over and to keep them on fresh pasture. The girls get to enjoy the scenery from all the different angles on the farm. They truly have some spectacular views – both mountain range and ocean filled. There are plenty of rushes and filled ridges where they can find shade and shelter. This really helps them to explore much more than a perfect grass paddock. The safety and security of the scrubs and rushes gives the girls the ability to go the extra mile. And we think you can taste that. You know what they say about happy wives …
Do you want to try some Beaks and Boulder eggs?
Do you like what we do? Do you like a beautifully orange/golden yolk? An all-around tasty egg? You can get your hands on them in
- Te Anau on Tuesdays at 11am in the event centre carpark;
- Southern Farmers Market, Invercargill every Sunday at the Railway station;
- Every day available from our road stall in Tuatapere
- At The Grocer in Lorneville, Tay Street and Woodlands
- Or you can read about our delivery option on this page
Have you tried some of our eggs and have a question or a complaint?
Please give us an opportunity to solve this with you. Do not hesitate to reach out to us.
Ring or text Cameron on 021 0839 1102 or email us on bloomingboulders@gmail.com
Tried our eggs and want others to know how good they are?
Scream it from the rooftops here!