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How Chef Lynn fell in love with Canadian egg farmers

It wasn’t Chef Lynn Crawford’s first trip to an egg farm—and we doubt it will be her last—but a recent visit to Egg Farmers of Canada Chairman Roger Pelissero’s family farm left a lasting impression on the world-class Canadian chef. She spent the day touring the farm with Roger and his son Jake.

You’ve read about Chef Lynn before. Whether it was inspiring Canadians to be #Eggsquisite for the holidays with fresh recipes, or sharing her passion for cooking with eggs, Chef Lynn is an egg superfan. In fact, she calls eggs “the perfect food.” And she knows what she’s talking about. The celebrity chef and award-nominated cookbook author has over 25 years of culinary experience, and is the chef/owner of Ruby Watchco, a market-inspired, chef-driven, comfort food restaurant in Toronto.

We chatted with her about her tour of the Pelissero farm and her thoughts on farming life.

The Pelissero farm is nestled in the vast greenery of the Township of West Lincoln, in the heart of Ontario’s Niagara Region—easily one of the greatest natural vistas of the province.

“It’s a gorgeous part of Ontario,” says Chef Lynn, and the beauty of the landscape reflects the beauty of the Pelisseros’ passion for their craft.

Chef Lynn was impressed not just by the family’s passion, but their dedication. “They’re experts in their field,” she notes, “and you have to applaud their dedication. Farming is 24/7 every day of the week, not a Monday to Friday gig.”

What inspired Chef Lynn was how engaged egg farmers are with curiosity about their industry. After all, we all want more Canadians meeting egg farmers and learning more about what they do.

“Roger and Jake welcome peoples’ interest and questions,” Chef Lynn notes.

“They talk to consumers about what they do. And it’s truly a science, isn’t it? How do you collect 9,000 dozen eggs in a week?!? 16,000 hens are a lot to manage, and so much expertise goes into ensuring it’s a clean, healthy environment for the hens.”

Chef Lynn clearly loves stories—and she loves the story of the people who bring you the simple goodness of a Canada Grade A egg. Canadian farmers are growing, raising and harvesting food for Canadians—and she finds the number of multi-generational family farmers in Canada amazing.

“Frankly, I don’t know what we would do without Canadian egg farmers,” she says.

“Eggs are healthy, they’re nutritious, they’re amazing, they’re delicious, brought to you by these amazing farmers… I find it exceptionally fascinating.”