Carrollton, GA – Born in 2007, Patrick Hutchinson is a self-proclaimed first-generation poultry farmer whose initial interest in chickens began when he was six years old. Routine trips to the hardware store built the foundation of what would become Patrick’s future endeavor.
“It started when I was in Boy Scouts,” says Patrick Hutchinson. “I used to go to Ace Hardware and get some Boy Scout supplies, and I always used to ask my mom, ‘Are the chicks here yet? Are the chicks here yet?’ And my mom said, ‘No, not yet.’ And every time I was there, I used to go there and look at them, and I said, ‘Mom, can I get one?’ She said, ‘Well, we have to own our own house. We can’t live in an apartment and have one.’”
“We moved here to our home and I’m so grateful for it. When we moved, when we came to look at the house and there was a little coop there, he was like, ‘This is the house.’ And I said, ‘Well, are you sure?’,” says Janie Hutchinson, Patrick’s mother.
With the help of the Carroll County 4-H Chick Project, Patrick and Mom Janie made the commitment to learn everything and anything about their chickens and other aspects of agriculture, including large and small animal sciences, as well as poultry judging. On February 28th of this year, Patrick officially registered his business with the Georgia Secretary of State Corporation’s Division. Since he’s only 11-year-old Mom Janie serves as the registered agent while his grandmother Teresa has the title of company organizer.
“I started off not selling eggs. I just ate the eggs. Then my mom, she said, ‘Why don’t you give the eggs away?’ And I gave them to one of my favorite teachers and my teacher told her friends and then they told their friends and that’s how I got started. And what’s fascinating about them is about how chickens, they don’t have to have males to lay eggs,” says Patrick.
“Once he gets out of school, it is like I do not fight with Patrick. We get out of the car. Patrick puts his backpack down and he works. He’s in the chicken coop. He lets the girls out for some exercise. He’s feeding them. I am Patrick’s uber. I get him to where he has to go, get him on time, deliver the eggs, make sure he goes to his extracurricular activities, because he’s a busy young man. Like, he’s in Boy Scouts. He is a part of the poultry judging team at the Ag Center. He’s a part of the Horse Club at the Ag Center. He swims with the Blue Fins with Carrollton Swimming,” says Janie.
Still not impressed? Well, consider this. Not only does he have his own LLC, his own bank account, his own business card, and a customer base of over 50 people, Patrick recently became a Farm Bureau member. At 11 years old, he is one of the youngest, if not the youngest Farm Bureau member in the state of Georgia.
“Well, it’s not really me. I pray every day before I go to bed, and God told me one day you should get more chickens. And I said, ‘Well, how many?’ He said, ‘600 or less.’ So, my goal is to get 600 chickens,” says Patrick.
“I attribute all that to the Ag Center,” says Janie. “You know, he was interested in poultry and they said, okay, well, we’re going to expose you to agriculture. He’s learned so much; from the safety of poultry farming, expenses of poultry farming.”
By: Ray D’Alessio