Lina: ‘Changing the world one egg at a time’

Kristen-Le Chelle Winchester

IN the village of Moruga, Lina Emily Chance-Bhagwat is making big steps by “changing the world one egg at a time” with her free range chicken farm.

At ten years old, the Moruga-born entrepreneur, is focused on building the Lina’s Free Range Eggs brand for her community. She believes placing focus on the members of her neighbourhood directly aligns with the strength of the community.

“If I take care of the community, it helps everyone else in the long run. It helps more businesses and it helps more people struggling to come up. The stronger the community the stronger my business is too,” she said to Newsday Kids.

In an interview at San Fernando Hill on August 21, Lina explained how one social media post sparked her passion for farming and the next five years as a young entrepreneur.

“When I was smaller, at five years old, I was helping out on my Grandma’s farm next door. After a few years, my dog died and to cheer me up they (grandparents) gave me a few chickens. They started to lay and I realised that was way too much eggs for us so I posted it up. From there my post went viral. It exploded and everything went crazy. It was mind-blowing.”

With the help of her father she uses social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok to market her business and to build her brand. Lina has been in awe of the positivity and support she has gotten on social media.

“They (people) think for my age I have been doing really good things. They expect me to be really big in the future. Everybody has been giving me a lot of support and leaving me really nice comments.”

She also uses her social media presence for her fund-raising activities like her upcoming Curry Q and the current “Free eggs for one year” promotion.

“I am way too young to get funding or grants from anyone. I am just ten and you have to be 16 and over to get grants. Mostly everything for my farm comes from my pocket. I will use social media to promote my brand. I need to buy feed and to build a bigger and more extended coop for the chickens.”

Lina said that a lot of work is needed to maintain a farm and rearing chickens, however, with the support of her parents who have been instrumental in her journey, it has eased her workload.

“After I get home from school in the evening time, I will come home to see about them. I will go and pick up the eggs and wash the waterers. I only feed them once a day so when they go to sleep their bellies are filled.

When the waterers are heavy my dad helps me with that. My mum answers the phone and takes the orders. They help a lot.”

Guided by her motto, “The happiest chickens lay the healthiest eggs” Lina engages in environmentally-friendly practices like biodegradable packaging and producing chemical-free manure on her farm. She believes sustainable farming practices are measures that more people should adopt in the farming industry.

“In America a lot of farmers use chemicals that are damaging the soil. My manure is really good so that doesn’t happen. We need healthy soil to plant. I think we need more things like this in the country. I try to be as biodegradable as I can. From now we need to think about what the future is going to be like.”

Though the cardboard packaging is more expensive, Lina vows to stay true to the sustainable practices that makes her farming business unique. She said all her packaging is locally sourced and 100 per cent paper. This is Lina’s way of conserving the environment.

“I made a promise forever that I will not use plastic cartons or crates. I will always use the cardboard ones.”

Lina prides herself on having a “no-waste” farm. She sources produce from markets and wholesalers to use as feed material for her chickens. She assures ethical farm practices and healthy eating habits for the chickens ensure the nutritional value of the eggs and this is what keeps the customers coming back for more.

“The chickens eat corn, vegetables, grass, bugs and they get lots of sunlight, exercise and fresh air. When you buy eggs from the grocery and you crack it you will see that the egg yolk is a really light yellow. With my eggs they (egg yolk) are a darker orange which means the chickens are happier and healthier.

“My eggs also doesn’t have a fresh smell. Most of the time when people buy my eggs they don’t stop because it tastes so good,” she boasted.

Lina’s role models, celebrity Tik Toker MrBeast and Sunita Persad, managing director of S and S Persad Supermarket have driven her generosity and passion for giving back.

“I would donate the small eggs and the ones with little cracks on them to people who need them.”

The young farmer has made massive strides in building her brand and reputation. She has participated in the 2024 Food and Beverage Expo and Trinidad and Tobago Agri Expo and the 2022 Agriculture Ministry’s Backyard Egg Production Webinar and Stakeholders Meeting. She is also a part of the Agricultural Society of Trinidad and Tobago and the youngest member of Sills Farmers Support Group.

Lina has also won the “Elite Young Entrepreneur of the Year” award in 2022.

Though she has made big moves, she views her journey from humble beginnings to now as her greatest accomplishment.

“Seeing where I started to where I am now. I am really proud of that.”

Lina is looking towards the future with plans of being her own boss and running her own company.

She advises young people wanting to pursue entrepreneurship and agriculture, “Anyone who wants to go into farming once you put your mind to it you can do it. It will be a struggle at the start, but you will get the experience. Once you keep trying and working at it you will be successful.”

 

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