The extended Hudson family at Burnbrae Farms in Lyn, Ont., earlier this year. The painting on the silo reproduces a circa 1942 photograph of, left to right, Joe Hudson, who as a teenager set the business on its path of egg production, with his father Arthur and brother Grant.Supplied
Margaret Hudson’s early years growing up on the forested, hilly landscape of Burnbrae Farms profoundly shaped how she runs the six-generation family business that is one of Canada’s largest egg producers today.
“My childhood was spent cruising along the trails in the woods and really developing a deep love for nature,” says the Burnbrae president and CEO, who in her teens picked and packed countless eggs on the family farm in Lyn, Ont., 120 kilometres south of Ottawa.
So she enthusiastically rose to her father Joe Hudson’s challenge to develop the company’s environmental sustainability initiatives, starting in 1996 with a project to include more recyclable materials in egg cartons.
But strategies such as cage-free farming and producing renewable energy take time and money. Burnbrae is only able to implement such measures because of its family ownership, says Margaret, who graduated from the University of Toronto in the 1990s with an undergraduate degree in environmental science and business as well as an MBA. Her father enshrined a patient approach of short-term financial pain for long-term gain by designing Burnbrae’s governance to maintain both family ownership and buy-in on company direction, she adds.
Privately owned family businesses have more freedom than other enterprises to pursue what interests them, provided the leadership is cohesive and aligned on principles, says Patrick O’Connor, CEO at Blackwood Family Enterprise Services in Winnipeg. Governance structures such as the family council that Joe established two decades ago can set a foundation for relationships and values that span generations.
Mr. O’Connor says that publicly traded companies, for example, often focus on quarterly growth, “but because the Hudsons have control, it’s not about short-term gains.” That has afforded Burnbrae the time to shift toward sustainability, whereas outside shareholders might sideline an idea over cost.
Today, Joe’s five children are the company decision makers and define Burnbrae’s ethos even as it has grown into a national operation working with 400 independent farmers whose chickens lay millions of eggs annually. Along with dozens of value-added products, the eggs are sold in hundreds of supermarkets and to food manufacturers and major restaurant chains across Canada. Its sustainability measures include building a solar farm in Woodstock, Ont., and selling a line of free-range eggs where hens live in open-concept barns with access to the outdoors. Burnbrae keeps two main offices – one at the Lyn farm, the other in Mississauga, Ont.
“The family is involved in Burnbrae’s big decisions around deploying capital and human resources, but also in establishing the culture,” says Margaret, now in her 50s.
Clockwise from middle: Joe Hudson with his children Margaret, Helen Anne, Ted, Mary Jean McFall and Sue in Lyn, Ont., in 2023. Each sibling has an ownership stake in Burnbrae Farms and they are united in maintaining the legacy of their father, who died last year.Supplied
Three of her siblings also have senior roles at the company, while the fourth co-chairs the Burnbrae Farms Foundation, which supports nutrition programs in Ontario and in Canada’s North. Each sibling has an ownership stake and they are unified in maintaining the legacy of their father, who died last year at 94.
Joe’s great-grandfather Joseph purchased 100 acres in Lyn in 1891 after immigrating from Scotland. Joseph used the Scottish terms for stream (“burn”) and hillside (“brae”) to name the dairy farm he established, describing the surrounding landscape.
Burnbrae shifted to eggs in the early 1940s when 13-year-old Joe raised 50 chicks for a school project. “He fell in love with poultry farming,” Margaret says. By the time he finished high school, Burnbrae had more than 3,000 chickens.
In the 1950s, it was selling to supermarkets and bought eggs from other farmers to meet demand. “Our father realized he needed to grow to compete,” she explains. Expansion accelerated through the 1960s as Joe built up relationships, including with provincial boards as supply management shaped the market.
He was keenly aware that good governance encouraging structure and communication was needed if his children were to sustain Burnbrae long-term. “Dad actually implemented the family council when we were in our 30s, recognizing that to transition [leadership] we needed to meet regularly to make long-term decisions,” Margaret says. The council, now made up of the extended family, gathers annually to discuss company values and policies.
Joe and his wife, also deceased, fostered tight bonds that keep the family unified in its vision, adds their daughter Sue, Burnbrae’s senior director of communications and digital marketing. Her mother ensured the family and business were close-knit, regularly hosting gatherings for relatives at the farm as well as a company-wide employee appreciation day.
Joe Hudson and his wife Mary fostered tight family relationships that keep the succeeding generations unified in their vision for Burnbrae Farms.Supplied
Strong connections and dialogue are key to the family’s drama-free succession, Sue notes, adding that each sibling carved out their role organically, with no one feeling slighted.
Yet Burnbrae’s evolving governance has become increasingly important to keep the company within family control and to foster its long-term success, Margaret adds. “As we get bigger and bigger, with more family members, it becomes more and more important that we have our family council with rules for entry into the business.”
For example, Hudsons aspiring to the company’s leadership must first work in entry-level positions. They must pursue relevant post-secondary education, including in the trades, and then gain more internal and external work experience before moving into Burnbrae management, Sue says.
One of Joe’s 10 grandchildren who is on the path to leadership is Will McFall. He first worked at Burnbrae packing egg cartons into boxes and loading them onto trucks. He studied agribusiness at Cornell University and then held jobs at other companies before becoming Burnbrae’s director of producer and industry relations. His brother John is taking a similar route, now working in Burnbrae’s trade department.
Though neither brother is guaranteed to lead the family business, the door is open with mentorship and opportunity. Burnbrae’s governance sets out clearly how the next generation will become shareholders, Margaret says. “We set the stage.”
For Will, who is in his 30s, that is reassurance enough of his role in the company. “It’s very motivating knowing I have a place helping Burnbrae remain sustainable for generations to come.”