Youth Development Program

Canada’s egg industry operates under the uniquely Canadian system of supply management and registered egg producers require quota to operate.  One of the benefits of supply management is that it provides farming enthusiasts with the opportunity to raise egg laying hens without the need for quota – each farmer can raise up to 300 hens in Alberta.

The Youth Development Program will provide young farmers with a ‘hand-up’ versus a ‘hand-out’; Egg Farmers of Alberta will provide education and training about egg production, while also introducing them to the Canadian egg industry.  The YDP will help ensure that their eggs are produced in accordance with the industry’s world-class standards for food safety and animal care.

The YDP will accept a maximum of 20 unregistered young egg farmers, on a first-come first-serve basis, for a maximum of 10 years.  Participants must already have an exemption number that authorizes them to ship their eggs to a licensed processor in the province.  EFA will help ensure that these farmers and the marketers of their product meet all provincial regulatory requirements, and will also offer a 50% rebate of the levy paid, upon demonstration that all of the program elements have been satisfied.

In order to be considered an eligible applicant for Egg Famers of Alberta’s Youth Development Program, the following criteria must be met:

• Be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada;
• Be a permanent resident of Alberta and live on the farm (limited to 1 participant per legal land location);
• Be between the ages of 15-25 years of age
• Have an exemption number from EFA

Interested parties must complete and submit a Youth Development Program Application Form to the Egg Farmers of Alberta Board of Directors.  Applicants can submit their application form via mail, or in person at the EFA office.

Farmers operating under the YDP must renew their application on an annual basis.

Applicants must already have an exemption number from EFA.  An Exemption Form can be submitted to the Egg Farmers of Alberta Board of Directors via mail, or in person at the EFA office

Egg Farmers of Alberta’s Policies and Regulations related to unregistered producers will apply (ie: levy and field verifications) to all farmers operating under the Youth Development Program.  Other requirements include:

• Mandatory participation in Start Clean – Stay Clean on-farm food safety program, which includes SE testing a minimum of two times per production cycle
• Mandatory participation in on-farm Animal Care Program
• Must provide EFA with copies of Chick Placement Permit, which can be obtained from the hatchery
• Must attend at least one EFA meeting (ie: Annual General Meeting or Regional Meeting) during each calendar year
• Must ship eggs to a grading station that is licensed by EFA, which complies with all Policies and Regulations (ie: weekly reporting of all eggs graded, and the deduction and remittance of the service charge)