All about egg production – an Insightful visit for McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmers

Harry Morley, one of McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmers (PYF), has shared his experience of his placement year at The Lakes Free Range Egg Company (The Lakes).

The 2024-25 group of 8 students and McDonald’s Agriculture Coordinator Lucy Kitching travelled from across the UK and Ireland to visit The Lakes, on an insight day as part of their Progressive Young Farmers (PYF) programme.

Designing the day to provide a wider industry understanding and rounded experience for his peers, Harry Morley introduced CEO David Brass, and the Agriculture Team then gave a presentation on his personal journey in his placement working at The Lakes.

The PYFs also heard from Will Mason, The Lakes’ Data Field Person, who demonstrated how the innovative BirdBox technology works across all the flocks supplying The Lakes. Designed and developed in-house, it is the first of its kind in the world and enables improved animal welfare for the hens, as well as better margins for the producers.

Also joining the group was Agricultural Director Roger Gill, who outlined how the Agricultural team supported producers, shared best practice, and ensured compliance,  and was also on hand for questions. Jess Elliman was the first PYF placement at The Lakes and joined The Lakes’ Field Advisory team on graduation. She shared her experience of transitioning from a placement student to working full-time at The Lakes.

Harry with Jess – McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmers

Touring the packing centre, the group saw how over one million eggs a day are packed and despatched to customers, including McDonald’s.

Providing a holistic view of the business, the PYFs visited the chick-rearing facilities and learned from Pullet Rearing Farm Manager Lesley Allick, before travelling to visit a flock of free-range hens out on their range. Here they learned about the different production systems, the method of collecting the eggs, management techniques, different breeds of hens, their natural diets, and the colours of the eggs they produce.

Commenting on his time at The Lakes, Roger Gill said, “Harry is the sixth PYF we’ve had on a placement year. We carefully design and tweak the programme to give our PYFs a good understanding of the whole supply chain and for them to be able to identify what is important and what to focus on. Harry has experienced our chick-rearing units, walking hens on ranges, collecting eggs, visits with our field staff, and now also understands the relevance of paperwork, audit trails, and health and safety.

“Harry organised the entire day, and it went very well. We have seen him grow considerably in his time here, and he has a good grasp of our industry. Harry sat on a discussion panel at the Future Countryside 2025 and was keen to present to his peers, which shows just how far his confidence and knowledge have grown.“

Commenting on the day Harry said, “It was a great opportunity to reflect on my time on the McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmer Scheme and with my Lakes placement. There are many ways the program has benefited me – both professionally and personally.

Reflecting on his achievements, Harry said, “I think one of the things I am proudest of whilst at The Lakes was being trusted to look after the rearing unit when Lesley was on holiday. It was quite a responsibility.”

Harry will leave his placement in August before returning to Harper Adams University to complete his degree.

McDonald’s PYF’s hear about The Lakes Free Range Egg Company

The PYF event was organised by Lucy Kitching, Agricultural Coordinator at McDonald’s UK & Ireland. Commenting on the visit, Lucy said “Harry’s insight day was truly fascinating, and a great opportunity to hear about other sectors in the agricultural industry and the inspiring story of how The Lakes has grown over the years.

“We really appreciated hearing from Roger, Harry, Jess and Will who told us all about their roles and the projects they are working on. From hearing about rearing chicks, and the number of producers The Lakes have, to the scale of tree planting done to benefit both the chickens’ health and wellbeing and the environmental impact they have, it was a real revelation for our group.”

Helen Brass with current and past PYF Students