Weaver family has been delivering eggs for four generations, now it’s a $7.7 billion business

The “Incredible Edible Egg” just got a little bit more incredible, according to a Lancaster farmer whose family has dedicated itself to fulfilling the promise of the 1970s American Egg Board slogan.

George Weaver IV is the vice president of Utopihen Farms and the latest George Weaver in a long line of George Weavers to dedicate himself to bringing higher quality eggs to consumers while simultaneously helping small local egg farmers to bring their product to market.

“I am the fourth generation George,” Weaver explains. “My great grandfather would have started into the egg industry in 1963, and he was very community-focused. His goal and mission was to help other businesses in the local area. He started with a single flock and that grew into a collective.”

That collective, which operates under the name Westfield Egg Farm, Inc., grew into one of the oldest egg collectives on the East Coast, currently partnered with 53 family farms. The Weaver farm sits on a parcel of land once owned by William Penn’s son in the fertile countryside and micro farming belt of Lancaster County, west of Philadelphia.

When Weaver’s grandfather George Jr. came on the scene, he added his own innovations to the family business, including the invention of the first low-cholesterol egg, according to Weaver. His grandfather’s egg contained 25% less cholesterol than what the FDA required at that time. Today the FDA cholesterol requirement for eggs meets the lower standard set by his grandfather.

“My father grew up in this as well,” Weaver said. “Ten years ago he created a pasture-raised egg.” That egg became the Nature’s Yolk brand of free-range chicken eggs.

Today Weaver is making his own mark on the family business and the $7.7 billion a year egg industry, overseeing 115 million pasture-raised and free-range eggs a year and ensuring this top food staple gets into the hands of consumers. His particular passion centers on eco-conscious farming, which led to the creation of Utopihen Farms two years ago.

“Utopihen Farms is not a new egg,” he explains. “We’re relabeling what we are already doing under a more distinct brand.”

And it’s a brand with a message. “We are about sustainability and making a difference in the world. We are 100 percent plastic-free. Consumers and states are banning plastic and we want to help make that change happen. Our farming is 100 percent carbon neutral and that is going to be a big draw. We think consumers are going to respect that and join us on the journey to help clean up the world.”

The Utopihen Farms brand first started showing up in retail outlets in mid-February and can be found up and down the East Coast in larger distribution centers and mom-and-pop shops alike. Central Pennsylvania shoppers can find Utopihen Farms eggs in Acme Markets and Mom’s Organic Market.

Four different types of eggs are sold under the Utopihen name, most notably Pasture Raised Duck Eggs, which the company’s marketing material describes as “an epicurean baker’s dream, with higher protein and fat making these ideal for Paleo or Keto eaters” and the Pasture Raised Soy-Free Egg, which is the sought-after egg for soy-free eaters, with 6x vitamin D.

Weaver says there are plans to expand distribution further. “We are looking to expand as opportunities open and make sense, as long as we are still able to sustain our farming practices,” he says.

Weaver sums up his vision for the Utopihen Farms this way: “I would say my key phrase is we are more than an egg brand; we are a movement. We are a sustainability initiative brand that sells eggs. We want consumer is to join us on the journey to creating a better world.”