It's no 'yolk' -- Lewiston egg farm ships more than a half million eggs per day

ROLLING, ROLLING: Eggs move along at Oakdell. / Photo by Davis Archibald

By Davis Archibald

April 24, 2008 | LEWISTON-- Five hundred, forty thousand brown and white eggs are shipped out from the Oakdell Egg Farms in Lewiston every day.

The farm was built in 1985 in Lewiston and started with three chicken barns, and now has 11 barns holding a total of 750,000 chickens. They also employ 35 full-time employees.

Mark Woodward, one of the owners of Oakdell Egg Farms, credits Lewiston's farm-friendly atmosphere as part of the reason for its location.

"There is a lot of tolerance," Woodward said. "We needed to make sure we weren't too close to homes."

Oakdell Farms was first started by Woodward's father and grandfather in Franklin, Idaho, where they still have a farm. Now along with the Franklin and Lewiston farms they also have two farms in Washington state. All counted there are five family members who have ownership in the business.

The eggs go through a process of washing, sorting and quality control, packaging and then shipping. The farm has a USDA inspector on site verifying the quality of their product.

Oakdell eggs can be found mostly in the states of Utah, Idaho, and some areas of Washington. The farm has three major accounts with Western Family, Costco, and Kroger.

The farm also has an on-site store where you can buy fresh eggs six days a week. The hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

QUALITY CONTROL: A worker keeps a close watch on the day's production. / Photo by Davis Archibald

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