Eggheads

In early 2025 HPAI outbreaks had egg prices sitting at record highs; just one year later they're hitting inflation-adjusted historic lows. And while that may be great for consumers looking for a cheap source of protein, it has a lot of US producers feeling the squeeze. Joining us to discuss the issue is Brian Moscogiuri. Formerly of Urner Barry, and Eggs Unlimited, Brian recently launched a new venture called KHM Trading, a commercial wholesale broker of shell eggs and egg products. Brian understands the dynamics of the US egg market better than anyone, and today he discusses the factors contributing to the dip in prices, what the industry's doing to try and drum up new demand, and when producers might start to see some relief.

From the time you start to suspect you might have an HPAI outbreak on your farm, to getting lab confirmation, can take between 1 and 5 days. And while producers wait for those results to come back, they're forced to make extremely tough decisions — cancelling deliveries, isolating employees, culling entire flocks — based on incomplete information. Erik Tyrrell-Knott is the President and Chief Business Officer of Alveo, a company that's built a handheld HPAI testing device that delivers a trustworthy result in 45 minutes. And while their tests won't replace the current lab testing we use today, their aim is to give veterinarians and producers the data they need to act with speed and confidence. Today, Erik walks us through how the test works, why it represents such an important leap forward in the fight against HPAI, and how it could one day make "partial depopulation" possible.

There are so many different types of egg-farmers: traditional caged operations, cage-free, free-range organic...the list goes on. But one organization strives to represent all of their interests, and advocate on their behalf at the highest levels of government. Chad Gregory is the President and CEO of the United Egg Producers (UEP), an organization that represents over 90% of US egg farmers. The UEP provides a forum where producers big and small can debate important topics, and shape the policies that ultimately impact how they do business. Chad came on the show just a few days after the State of the Union address, and for the second year running, President Trump referenced the egg industry directly. Today, we get into what the President said, the UEP's ongoing efforts to get an HPAI vaccine approved, and how they've responded to ongoing pressure from animal rights groups.

There are so many different ways to introduce contaminants during the egg production process: improperly used chemicals, dirty equipment, poor handling techniques, the list goes on. And it's the job of today's guests to develop and enforce the protocols that prevent all that from happening, which would be a tough enough gig for one facility, let alone 15. Kim Rice is the VP of Food Safety and Quality at Rose Acre Farms, the second largest egg producer in the US. She joins us today to talk about mitigating all of the different avenues for biological or chemical contamination, what makes the egg business unique in terms of food safety, and the several layers of bureaucracy she needs to navigate on a day-to-day basis.

Sometimes people have this idea that farmers shouldn't use immigrant workers at all, and that there are enough people looking for work domestically to staff their operations. Today, we're getting into why that's often just simply not the case. Kyle Farmer is the founder of Farmer Law PC where he's an attorney specializing in immigration law. He works with producers, and operators throughout the agricultural industry to help them navigate the complexities of the legal system, and find solutions for their labor needs.Today, Kyle walks us through why access to foreign labor is often a necessity for farmers, delves into the ins and outs of different immigration programs, and explains how politics play into all of this.

In four generations, the Braswell family has gone from selling animal feed to local farmers, to becoming one of the largest suppliers of organic feed and specialty eggs on the east coast. And now, Trey Braswell, the president and CEO of Braswell Family Farms, is focused on continuing that incredible legacy. Trey joins us today to walk us through the history of the company, to take us inside their long-standing partnership with Eggland's Best, and explain how his unique approach to team building and leadership has made Braswell resilient to whatever challenges may come.

What a year it's been for Eggheads. We've featured so many new voices and interesting perspectives from throughout the egg world, and gained a whole bunch of new listeners along the way. Today, Greg shares his thoughts on all of the people and issues we've highlighted in 2025, and what you can expect from the show as we move into 2026. Happy New Year!

Today, we're returning to our special scramble format and welcoming to the show three legends of the egg industry. We have Mark Kleinsmith, formerly the National Sales and Marketing Manager for Lubing USA, Steve Kuykendall, formerly a Regional Manager for Lubing USA, and Craig England, who spent decades working on the breaker and grader side of the industry. These three old friends have a combined 125 years of industry experience, and they join us to reflect on how the industry has changed over the course of their careers, and to share stories from back in the days when things were a little less corporate, and a bit more rough and tumble.

Steve DeWeerdt, and his parents before him, grew the DeWeerdt poultry farm from a small family business into a massive egg production and processing operation. But when Michigan passed a law mandating that all egg producers in the state go cage-free, Steve was faced with a choice: adapt or close up shop. Ultimately, Steve decided to make the transition, and today he takes us through that long process from start to finish, including the race against time to get their farm switched over, and the steep learning curve they faced when they ultimately got there.

After nearly a year and a half of hearing his voice on Eggheads, we figured you might be curious about who Greg is and why in the world he decided to start a podcast about the egg industry. Well today, we hope to give you some insight, by flipping the script and putting Greg in the guest's seat. Stepping in as host for the day is Dr. Kay Russo. Kay's always been willing to lend us her scientific expertise when it comes to bird flu, and in this episode she uses that same academic rigour to tease out the details of Greg's journey from accounting to agricultural construction. Today, we hear from Greg about what initially pushed him to found Ag Installers, the mistakes that helped him learn along the way, and what inspires him to keep Eggheads going.

Logan Webster has worn many hats in his life: he grew up on a broiler farm in South Arkansas, he worked in PR for Tyson Foods, he interned for a US Senator in Washington, and now, he's an entrepreneur working on an app that could prove to be an indispensable resource for growers everywhere. We've talked a lot about the broiler industry on this show, but for the first time we're featuring a voice from inside of it. Logan's going to walk us through his family's experience working as contract growers, the different challenges that people face within that industry, and how his new app 'Chicken Sheet' aims to make their lives a little bit easier.

On this show we've talked a lot about the debate around vaccinating birds against highly pathogenic avian influenza, and the opposing views on the issue within the egg and broiler industries. For clues on how to break that deadlock, we looked to a country that experienced very similar pushback when they first started talking about vaccinating their own birds, but still managed to make it work. Charles Martins Ferreira is the Deputy Agricultural Counselor at the French Embassy in Washington. As a trained veterinarian, Charles has worked on sanitary and phytosanitary issues all over the world. Now his job specifically involves monitoring the situation with bird flu in North America. Charles joins us to talk about the French experience with HPAI, the debate surrounding vaccination, and the incredible success they've had in curbing outbreaks. We also get into the importance of post-vaccination surveillance, and how bold leadership was instrumental in getting them across the finish line.

Glenn Hickman is the president of Hickman's Family Farms, one of the largest egg producers in the southwestern US. You'd think that their location in the middle of the Sonoran desert, well outside the range of migratory birds, would keep them safe from outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). But that was unfortunately not the case. After taking root in a nearby dairy farm, HPAI spilled over into Glenn's facility. 80 years of continuous operation came to a screeching halt, and the Hickmans were forced to sacrifice 95% of their flock — nearly 6 million birds. Glenn takes us inside his operation as he attempts to repopulate, and shares his perspective on what the industry needs to do to prevent this from happening over and over again.