LIVING ON THE LAND // Nicole Feggans of Jamberoo Mountain Farm
It All Began With Eggs Benedict!
By Josephine Grieve
Nicole Feggans can’t stop smiling as she drives her eggmobile – a khaki military buggy laden with 1000 eggs – across lush pasture to her processing shed.
“I feel invigorated every morning when I go to work,” Nicole says.
“It doesn’t matter is if it’s in the sunshine, the rain or even the mist rolling across the escarpment.”
Following regenerative agriculture principles, Nicole moves her chicken caravans ‘one spot’ across the paddock every day and rotates the area with grazing cattle to maximise soil fertility.
It’s ethical.
It’s sustainable.
And by living on the land, Nicole Feggans and husband Lachlan have created the perfect work life balance for their young family.
So how did they get here?
For Nicole, it all started with Eggs Benedict!
1 :: Have you always been passionate about living on the land?
Nope, it came out of nowhere.
I grew up on the northern beaches and my career was in advertising and marketing for magazines.
But Lachlan always worked in sustainability for big corporations, so he had a passion for the land and putting theory into practice.
2 :: How did you end up at Jamberoo Mountain Farm?
We were living in a small apartment in Cremorne with a patch of grass at the back and I was working with a travel magazine, and travelled to the area regularly for work.
We started doing farm stays to explore different areas and spoke about looking for a farm. It took us two years to find this and we knew instantly it was the right place.
3 :: Why did you start producing pasture raised eggs?
I always had a love of eggs. Every weekend, I’d make Eggs Benedict.
The secret to poaching eggs is a fresh egg – when you crack it into a pot of boiling water, it should hold together.
I tried many producers, and the best were Kangaroo Island Free Range Eggs. I became interested in their farming model using chicken caravans. And that was my first connection with egg farming. It sparked something inside me.
At the same time we were looking for a farm, Taranaki Farm in Victoria was on Gardening Australia and were inspired by their use of Joel Salatin’s incredible rotation model for eggs and beef.
Later, when we visited an egg farm in Kangaroo Valley, I thought ‘this is something I could do. Something I could manage day to day.’
So we signed up for a number of courses – a hands-on week with Joel Salatin at Taranaki Farm near Melbourne, courses in Sydney with Milkwood and a ‘chicken day’ at Buena Vista Farm in Gerringong – and got started!
4 :: Tell us more about your business at Jamberoo Mountain Farm
We started small with 100 chickens and an old caravan from a neighbour that we fitted out ourselves.
When local restaurants made orders, we added another 300 chickens and upgraded to a bespoke Chicken Caravan with its fantastic design, function and mobility.
Over five years, our business grew to 1500 chickens and three Chicken Caravans. There is so much demand, we could keep growing but it’s almost reached the size that I can manage.
As the pandemic eases, restaurants are asking for more eggs, and we may add one more caravan so we end up with about 2000 chickens.
We also run cattle and sell slow-growth beef to restaurants and specialist butchers who take the whole animal, nose to tail at three years of age. When cattle have a good life following ethical principles, it makes a huge difference to the meat’s flavour and nutrient profile.
5 :: What are the challenges you face?
We work in a natural environment with changing weather and seasons. The cold, the heat, and the water all affect egg-lay rates, unlike barn-raised chickens.
A big part of my role is educating our restaurants and other customers – if they want pasture raised produce, there will be some inconsistency.
Predators are a challenge – foxes and eagles – so I always have to be on top of the electric fences.
Luckily during the pandemic, we were able to redirect most of our business from restaurants to retail.
The egg sales in IGAs went through the roof because a lot of people wanted to shop locally! IGA Gerringong was our first lockdown customer and I found new retailers in Kiama.
Having relationships with fellow farmers is vital – those deep conversations about the land. We learn from each other’s experience, and I know I can call on them when I need advice.
It’s hard work running a farm. Seven days a week. It’s a full-time gig but I would never change it.
6 :: Would you recommend farming as a career for your daughters?
Definitely! My job offers me great satisfaction – not only is it rewarding and challenging, but no day is the same.
I’m constantly learning and setting goals for myself and for the farm. It’s a big commitment but there’s flexibility to work around family and involve them in the process.
Being connected to the land and working in nature every day is incredible for mind and body too.
Lastly, providing good, honest and healthy food whilst healing the land is a very important part of our future.
7 :: What do you love about living on the land?
I love the community. And the farm business gives me flexibility to be super-involved with my kids and yet still have a purpose and run the farm. I can drop my kids to school. Attend school assembly. Do a camping trip once a term.
Also the connection to the land and being in the open space. Going out to collect eggs automatically relaxes me whatever the weather.
Hey gang, you can buy Jamberoo Mountain Eggs from IGAs in the Illawarra and South Coast. You’ll also find them at Kiama Farmer’s Market.
Oh, and to learn more about the Joel Salatin model for regenerative farming, his entertaining book Salad Bar Beef is a good place to start – at least until he can return to Australia to teach practical courses.
