COMPANY HISTORY: Nature’s Yoke expresses the positive side of natural foods. “We are naturally yoked to nature. We connect to nature through natural products. When nature works together, things work well.”
George Weaver III represents the third generation of his family to be in the egg business. Grandfather George Weaver Sr. originally developed an egg business on his family’s farm in New Holland, PA. That was almost 50 years ago. In 1962, Mr. Weaver started selling eggs produced on his farm directly to supermarkets in nearby cities. Soon he began working with other local farmers to sell their eggs to retailers as well.
Then about 23 years ago, George Weaver Jr. ventured into the premium egg business. He sought to offer a value-added egg to his customers. Requests were coming for organic eggs and George Jr. saw potential there. He called for a higher quality feed. He focused on better housing for his chickens. And the eggs he sold were fresher, because with local products the eggs spent much less time in transit and storage.
The trend to offer a high quality egg prompted the company to become certified organic in 1994. Most of these eggs were packed for other marketing companies with varying expectations of the farms.
Partnerships with local farmers who had empty chicken houses continued to develop. Many local farmers had stopped raising eggs years ago as the mass producers controlled most of the market. These houses had been antiquated from the pressures of mass production farming techniques. They were ready to be equipped for cage-free farming since they were small scale operations. With the strong public trend toward natural and organic foods by 2000, the demand was building for eggs that people felt safe feeding their families and themselves.
Then in 2000, George Weaver III decided to offer a brand name of his own—Nature’s Yoke. Nature’s Yoke provides the guidelines to the farmers they partner with on how to raise the chickens to meet a certain standard. In return Nature’s Yoke provides packaging and marketing for the goods the farmers produce. The benefit of this arrangement has been two-fold. Nature’s Yoke now has a larger supply of eggs that have been produced in accordance with their standards, and once-struggling local farmers now have found a profitable way to use their property again. Not just any farm is up to the Nature’s Yoke standards for natural eggs. Currently, 50 some small, family farmers care for the chickens that produce Nature’s Yoke eggs. These farms are located in the Central Pennsylvania region, most within Lancaster County. Each and every farm is cage free, and several are USDA certified organic.
What does Nature’s Yoke require of the farmers? First of all, Cage Free. This means that the chickens are not kept in cages—neither the shopping cart size nor the larger ones modified to meet the term cage free, instead the chickens have the freedom to roam about at will in large barns. Secondly, Nature’s Yoke uses absolutely no drugs, hormones, or antibiotics. Exercise and fresh air naturally stimulate the immune system to fight sickness and disease.
On the organic front, the chickens are fed only certified organic feeds, produced according to organic specifications. These are cage-free chickens with outdoor access and are cared for according to organic guidelines. These eggs carry a paper trail from the farm to the carton verifying organic procedures. Pennsylvania Certified Organic monitors and certifies the Nature’s Yoke organic eggs.
Nature’s Yoke is committed to sustainable farming and supporting local farmers. “Local is our goal,” Weaver says. “There are enough small farmers locally that we can grow our business though. We haven’t maximized our sources yet. We feel it’s very important to help as many local, sustainable farmers as we can to survive and thrive.”
Nature’s Yoke offers many choices for the egg consumer. There are eggs with white shells and eggs with brown shells. There are natural veggie fed, cage free eggs and there are organic certified eggs. Omega3 enriched eggs are yet another option. And then there are the fertile eggs. Fertile eggs come from farms where hens and roosters are housed together. Some customers feel these eggs have greater health benefits—a different hormone make-up. Nature’s Yoke offers various sizes-- medium, large, extra-large and jumbo. You can find them in a beautiful, safely packed tri-fold plastic carton or in the more “earthy” pulp carton. They most often are presented in 1 dozen packs but ½ dozens are also available.
The company has an established distribution network in New York, New England, New Jersey, the Philadelphia area and the Baltimore region. But distribution via larger distributors makes the line southward to Florida, northward to Maine, and westward even to California.
The eggs are packaged on the Weaver Homestead in New Holland, PA. They are cleaned and graded. Then they must pass through the newest, state-of-the-art blood detector which removes any eggs with blood spots. The dirt detector, also the newest technology available, is to help the customers receive high quality products. Crack detectors sort out eggs that should be sent to the breaker instead of being sold as a shell egg. After being placed into the cartons, the cartons are hand-packed into cases and prepared to travel on to stores or distributors.
The niche Nature’s Yoke has found is clearly one that offers success in today’s natural and organic oriented food industry. That is not the only motivation. We are a Christian family...and we want to be good stewards of what God has given us. We believe sustainability is one way we can do that. Our faith, and our concept of our Creator, has a lot to do with how we run our business. We desire to glorify Him.
George Weaver III represents the third generation of his family to be in the egg business. Grandfather George Weaver Sr. originally developed an egg business on his family’s farm in New Holland, PA. That was almost 50 years ago. In 1962, Mr. Weaver started selling eggs produced on his farm directly to supermarkets in nearby cities. Soon he began working with other local farmers to sell their eggs to retailers as well.
Then about 23 years ago, George Weaver Jr. ventured into the premium egg business. He sought to offer a value-added egg to his customers. Requests were coming for organic eggs and George Jr. saw potential there. He called for a higher quality feed. He focused on better housing for his chickens. And the eggs he sold were fresher, because with local products the eggs spent much less time in transit and storage.
The trend to offer a high quality egg prompted the company to become certified organic in 1994. Most of these eggs were packed for other marketing companies with varying expectations of the farms.
Partnerships with local farmers who had empty chicken houses continued to develop. Many local farmers had stopped raising eggs years ago as the mass producers controlled most of the market. These houses had been antiquated from the pressures of mass production farming techniques. They were ready to be equipped for cage-free farming since they were small scale operations. With the strong public trend toward natural and organic foods by 2000, the demand was building for eggs that people felt safe feeding their families and themselves.
Then in 2000, George Weaver III decided to offer a brand name of his own—Nature’s Yoke. Nature’s Yoke provides the guidelines to the farmers they partner with on how to raise the chickens to meet a certain standard. In return Nature’s Yoke provides packaging and marketing for the goods the farmers produce. The benefit of this arrangement has been two-fold. Nature’s Yoke now has a larger supply of eggs that have been produced in accordance with their standards, and once-struggling local farmers now have found a profitable way to use their property again. Not just any farm is up to the Nature’s Yoke standards for natural eggs. Currently, 50 some small, family farmers care for the chickens that produce Nature’s Yoke eggs. These farms are located in the Central Pennsylvania region, most within Lancaster County. Each and every farm is cage free, and several are USDA certified organic.
What does Nature’s Yoke require of the farmers? First of all, Cage Free. This means that the chickens are not kept in cages—neither the shopping cart size nor the larger ones modified to meet the term cage free, instead the chickens have the freedom to roam about at will in large barns. Secondly, Nature’s Yoke uses absolutely no drugs, hormones, or antibiotics. Exercise and fresh air naturally stimulate the immune system to fight sickness and disease.
On the organic front, the chickens are fed only certified organic feeds, produced according to organic specifications. These are cage-free chickens with outdoor access and are cared for according to organic guidelines. These eggs carry a paper trail from the farm to the carton verifying organic procedures. Pennsylvania Certified Organic monitors and certifies the Nature’s Yoke organic eggs.
Nature’s Yoke is committed to sustainable farming and supporting local farmers. “Local is our goal,” Weaver says. “There are enough small farmers locally that we can grow our business though. We haven’t maximized our sources yet. We feel it’s very important to help as many local, sustainable farmers as we can to survive and thrive.”
Nature’s Yoke offers many choices for the egg consumer. There are eggs with white shells and eggs with brown shells. There are natural veggie fed, cage free eggs and there are organic certified eggs. Omega3 enriched eggs are yet another option. And then there are the fertile eggs. Fertile eggs come from farms where hens and roosters are housed together. Some customers feel these eggs have greater health benefits—a different hormone make-up. Nature’s Yoke offers various sizes-- medium, large, extra-large and jumbo. You can find them in a beautiful, safely packed tri-fold plastic carton or in the more “earthy” pulp carton. They most often are presented in 1 dozen packs but ½ dozens are also available.
The company has an established distribution network in New York, New England, New Jersey, the Philadelphia area and the Baltimore region. But distribution via larger distributors makes the line southward to Florida, northward to Maine, and westward even to California.
The eggs are packaged on the Weaver Homestead in New Holland, PA. They are cleaned and graded. Then they must pass through the newest, state-of-the-art blood detector which removes any eggs with blood spots. The dirt detector, also the newest technology available, is to help the customers receive high quality products. Crack detectors sort out eggs that should be sent to the breaker instead of being sold as a shell egg. After being placed into the cartons, the cartons are hand-packed into cases and prepared to travel on to stores or distributors.
The niche Nature’s Yoke has found is clearly one that offers success in today’s natural and organic oriented food industry. That is not the only motivation. We are a Christian family...and we want to be good stewards of what God has given us. We believe sustainability is one way we can do that. Our faith, and our concept of our Creator, has a lot to do with how we run our business. We desire to glorify Him.