McGill egg enthusiasts seeking official club status

In the midst of the sprawling farmlands of McGill’s Macdonald Campus in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, there has been a small chicken coop for a few years now.

“This kind of project shows we can have animals on the land, make it sustainable. We don’t make any money but we don’t lose any money and we also bring people closer to agriculture,” said Mac Egg Society president Ociane Canadas.

The society usually oversees 28 to 35 chickens at its small free-range farm. Thirty volunteers regularly come by to clean up, feed the birds and give them water all year round. The chickens produce dozens of eggs each week, which are sold to people on the Macdonald Campus.

“They have a bright yellow yolk because they’ve been eating grass, so they have a much better flavour,” said Caroline Begg, a teacher on the campus who regularly buys eggs.

The eggs have no grade so they can only be sold on campus.

“People from animal safety come in twice a year to check on our animals, check on their habitats and how they’re doing and we pass with flying colours every time,” Canadas said.

The group wants to bring its operation to the next level, so it’s seeking official club status from the Macdonald Campus Students’ Society. That would allow it to get funding from the school and make improvements. One member has already planned some renovations.

“She’s changing the ventilation system, she’s changing the water system,” Canadas told Global News.

The Macdonald Campus Students’ Society is in the process of deciding whether or not to grant them club status.

“It is a process that is under review,” President Jade Corriveau said in an email.

The Egg Society has a petition up on change.org in support of the cause.

“I’ve seen countless students come here, learn about sustainable agriculture, learn about chicken care, learn about free-range egg production,” said McGill agrology student Mathieu Ouellet, who has signed the petition.

Caroline Begg, who teaches plant science at the campus, believes the status will be granted.

“It’s just a matter of getting students interested and showing that you have a student body that will come out and work with these chickens.”