As a child, farmer Trey Braswell watched the president and first lady speak on the South Lawn of the White House during the annual Easter Egg Roll. This year, his family farm is continuing the tradition of supplying approximately 40,000 hard-boiled eggs to the historic event.
“As an egg farmer, these are things that you don’t expect,” Braswell said. “We believe our business is the Lord’s and we’re here to take care of it and be good stewards. It’s only by God’s grace that we have the opportunity to do this, to supply these eggs.” Braswell Family Farms began providing eggs, on and off, for the White House event in 1997. It is the fifth consecutive year the family has provided all of the eggs for the event on behalf of the American Egg Board.
The White House Easter Egg Roll officially began in 1878 and brings tens of thousands of people to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The Braswell family doesn’t just raise the eggs for the event; they also handle the whole process of getting the dyed eggs to the White House.
“It takes several days and a lot of volunteer labor hours to cook them in small batches to chill them and then to dye them,” Braswell said. The family works with culinary partner Stocked Pot to complete the process. The company boils, dyes and packages the eggs in Winston-Salem, N. C. before they are stored in a Braswell warehouse in Virginia and delivered to Washington, D.C. The farm says the process means the eggs travel about 493 miles and move through five states before they reach the green grass on the South Lawn.
Secretary of Agriculture Visits Farm
This year, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins visited the farm and toured the operation. The visit included a round-table discussion on labor, input costs, hen health and flock security with state egg and soybean producers. The American Egg Board, American Farm Bureau Federation, North Carolina Farm Bureau, the North Carolina Egg Association and United Egg Producers also participated.
Braswell said the egg roll is a day politics are set aside and people of different backgrounds are brought together. He and his wife have taken their three children to the celebration twice. Braswell said the event isn’t just a business opportunity, but it holds personal weight. “It’s really cool that not only is it a great event at the White House, but we’re really celebrating one of the most important events in the history of the world as we celebrate Christ’s resurrection,” he said.
The event takes place Monday, April 6.
