Egg Wars – Father vs. Son

Stories about people, stories about life.

Hometown Stories.

At the center of today's story - eggs.

Rising feed costs and a surge in avian flu cases have sent egg prices soaring in Japan.

Faced with these unprecedented challenges, a father and son are at odds over farming methods.

The father is an advocate of intensive farming using battery cages - a method he has relied on for years.

I raise as many as I can.

It was crucial for me to produce eggs
as cheaply as possible.

But his son has begun taking a more costly approach.

They can roam around freely.
Free in every aspect.

My eggs are pricier at 1 dollar a piece,

but that fits with the changing times.

This has led to some conflicts.

- You're not going to use my method?
- I'm not.

I'm forging my own path.
I'm not your mini-me or your slave.

Get off your high horse.

A family divided over eggs.

Will they reach a resolution?

Our story is set in a poultry farm in Aichi Prefecture.

This small farm has been around for half a century.

The 30,000 or so chickens here are reared in battery cages,

with two birds sharing a space just 20 centimeters wide.

About 90% of Japan's eggs are produced using cheap and intensive farming methods like this.

Miyamoto Kentaro has been working on this farm for over a decade.

It was started by his father.

I used to be a sales rep
for a pharmaceutical company.

Then in 2011, there was an outbreak
of avian flu in a nearby town.

That's when I began helping my dad.

I eventually got
fully involved in poultry farming.

Then, a few years ago, Kentaro built a separate coop on the farm and began to try a different method.

They come rushing to me when
I walk into the coop with their feed.

That makes me happy.

He is raising his chickens cage-free.

That's less stressful for the birds and takes their welfare into account.

I didn't know they enjoyed dust baths.

I learned that they bathe
in the sand to get rid of fleas.

She got upset.

They can lay eggs where they want.

And roam around.
They're free in every respect.

Rearing cage-free poultry requires more space.

This coop can house around 800 chickens.

That is why cage-free eggs tend to be more expensive.

Eggs in Japan are known
for being inexpensive,

but I think the prices
I charge are fair.

They shouldn't be super cheap to buy.

Someday, Kentaro hopes to take over his father's poultry farm and convert it into an entirely cage-free operation.

Along with his wife and kids, Kentaro visits his parents every Friday.

Something has been on his mind.

Hey there.

His father Yoshio had just gotten home.

He has been a poultry farmer for 50 years.

Yoshio and Kentaro have barely talked about the future of the farm.

Do you want to discuss it with him?

I'd always wanted to in the past.

But since he's been in this line
of work for 50 years,

he's not open to ideas from
someone he thinks is less experienced.

We need to have
those discussions soon.

Kentaro agreed to being filmed in order to help create a channel for communication.

Yoshio produced eggs from caged chickens since the beginning.

Ideally, I want him to keep running
things like this once he takes over.

He says he wants
to take a cage-free approach.

I have no idea how he plans
to go about that.

Yoshio lost his father at a young age.

After graduating from high school, he taught himself to raise chickens to support his family.

He started off with 100 birds and the scale of his operations continued to grow over the years.

Yoshio became the father of four children.

I lost my right hand as I was
preparing feed with heavy machinery.

I was worried about working
with just one arm,

but my willpower kept me going.

I was only able to come
this far thanks to the chickens.

I'm so grateful to them.

Yoshio felt that the only way he could support his family was through intensive farming,

in response to the demand for cheap eggs.

It was crucial for me to produce eggs
as cheaply as possible.

If you can't commit to that,

your business won't stand a chance.

Have you discussed
the farm with Kentaro?

Not really.

I don't like lecturing
my son and criticizing his methods.

I'd rather have him observe
how I work and judge for himself.

Yoshio and Kentaro are visiting their accountant's office to see how the business is doing.

Feed costs are up 20%
over last year.

Net sales are down by
about 13,000 dollars.

The major reason is that sales
are down for cage-raised eggs.

However, things are looking up for Kentaro's cage-free operation.

Are these figures
for cage-free eggs correct?

Revenue for cage-free eggs is
up 164% compared to last year.

I think it's a result
of your sales initiatives.

It's quite impressive.

Demand has been shifting from
mass-production to higher quality.

Kentaro is on the right track,
selling quality eggs at a higher price.

I think this approach
can help boost profits.

Kentaro has been pouring his energy into direct sales, emphasizing the merits of cage-free eggs.

That's contributed to his success.

What's the best way to prepare them?

I suggest cooking them
sunny side up with a runny yolk.

They're on the pricier side,

but I prefer buying eggs
from stress-free chickens.

I also want my child to be
conscious about these things.

My dad's approach may have
been right before, but not anymore.

Times are changing.

Three weeks have passed since they spoke to their accountant.

They're here.

Yoshio has decided to take a big step.

For the first time this year, he's bought more chicks, 7,000.

That's more than in years past.

Avian flu outbreaks have led to a shortage of eggs and a surge in prices.

Yoshio saw this as a potential business opportunity.

We need large quantities
for efficient production.

So we need to
raise high-quality chickens.

You want Kentaro to see you in action?

Yes, I do.
Did he say anything?

I suggested...

that he come here to see the chicks,

but he said he was busy.

For Kentaro, bringing in more chicks is a signal that his father intends to continue a battery-cage operation.

I'm a cage-free farmer.
I don't like seeing the chickens in cages.

I want to look after my family,
but my dad's methods are unsustainable.

That means that I have to
focus on my own business approach.

Caught in the crossfire between father and son is Kentaro's mother, Yukiko.

Although she's in poor health, she still works on the farm.

I have to listen to both sides,
so I'm stuck in the middle.

My husband vents to me,
and so does my son.

Being the intermediary
is so frustrating.

Kentaro needs to talk to his dad
with more sensitivity.

I want them to have
peaceful discussions.

I'm here.

Kentaro was seeking an opportunity to broach the subject.

It arrives unexpectedly.

The pudding is so rich.

Kentaro is supplying eggs to a renowned pâtissier in a faraway town.

His father shares his opinion.

Delivering to a shop so far away
is a waste of time and money.

He's a famous pâtissier.
It's good for publicity.

It beats sitting here and
grumbling about poor sales.

It's a tough decision...

It's not tough at all.

I know how to produce eggs,
but not how to sell or promote them.

It's not Yoshio's forte.

Well it's my forte.

- You're not going to use my method?
- I'm not.

It's not right that you
impose your views on me.

It feels like everything
I've done is being dismissed.

He said that your approach
was fine until now,

but from here on,
it will be tough to uphold.

You have your ways.

I'm forging my own path.
You need to respect that.

I'm not your mini-me or your slave.

There was a reason why Kentaro wanted to take over the business soon.

Mom is on the verge of collapsing.

She needs to take it easy.

I'm so worried that she'll get sick.
She needs to stop working.

- I do treat her well.
- You don't.

It's just hard for her
that we're fighting.

That's not true.
That's between you two.

Your marital problems are
seeping into our relationship too.

Get off your high horse.

You get so emotional.

You're putting yourself on
a pedestal and talking down to me.

Mom will collapse.
Let's go home.

Bye-bye.

I apologize for that.

How do you feel
about that discussion?

That wasn't a discussion.

Both of us just let out
a lot of pent-up feelings.

Kentaro was able to speak frankly.
I think that's an improvement.

We're getting old, so I think
things will eventually go his way.

I'm already 70,
so I guess that's inevitable.

He's making valid points, but...

I still want to
keep doing things my way.

Just a while longer.

Two weeks later.

Kentaro is visiting a local business consultant.

We've been locking horns,
shooting down each other's ideas.

These disagreements are
keeping us from moving forward.

He hopes to resolve the issues with his father.

I want us to reach an understanding
and accept each other's reasoning.

That's why I came to you.

The consultant had a question about Kentaro's father.

Did he lose his hand
before he began farming?

No, it was while he was working.

He probably had to come up with
his own unique solutions to work.

Because of that, I believe
your father has strong attachments

to his farming methods, equipment,
and business achievements.

If it weren't for him, us four kids
couldn't have gone to university.

It's so impressive that
he can work with just one hand.

We all went to private universities.

I'm sure it cost a lot of money.

It's amazing he could afford that.

Kentaro decides to give talking to his father another go.

This time, the consultant will be present.

Kentaro and his father will share their views on the future of the farm.

I need to train my successors.

Drops in revenue might
be another potential issue.

Kentaro has decided to listen attentively to his father.

Suddenly, Yoshio opens up.

I struggled after losing my hand,

but it also led me to feel gratitude.

I feel it much more
than the ordinary person.

That's how it is with me.

I want to express
my gratitude to my wife,

and everyone in my life.

Kentaro had never heard his father talk like this before.

Our opinions may differ
on the small details,

but looking at the bigger picture,
I think we're on the same page.

They've decided to hold regular monthly
father-son discussions.

They still lock horns sometimes.

You should bring in more chickens.

That'll compromise the quality.

Farming isn't a hobby.

Well, my set-up
is bringing in profits.

I'll have rice with a raw egg.

A simple dish.

I'll use one of Kentaro's eggs.

How is it?

Delicious.

It's natural for us to think differently.

We grew up in different times
and different environments.

It would be strange
if our perspectives were identical.

It's not unusual to have quarrels
around business succession.

That's how to reach better outcomes
than your predecessor.

I may be hard headed,
but so is my son.

I'm not hard headed.
Just unwavering.