Meet United Egg Producers Certified Farmer: Sharman Hickman
Sharman Hickman is used to fielding questions from inquisitive youngsters — especially about eggs.
“Why don’t breakfast eggs hatch?”
“What’s the difference between a brown and white egg?”
“Is it true that you can make art from an egg shell?”
Sharman is an egg farmer. She and her brothers run Hickman’s Family Farms, a family-owned farm that’s been in operation since 1944.
The farm started when Sharman’s grandparents, Bill and Gertie Hickman, began selling eggs to local vendors and restaurants from the 500 or so hens in their backyard. Business grew and the family purchased one refrigerated panel truck to deliver eggs to coffee shops in Glendale and the Carnation Restaurant in Phoenix.
Today, Grandpa and Grandma Hickman’s egg operation has expanded to two farms in Arlington and Maricopa, Ariz., with 3 million egg-laying hens. They process 2 million eggs each day for vendors throughout Arizona and Southern California. Hickman’s also markets the eggs for a South Dakota-based ranch.
Sharman’s brother, Glenn, took over as president of Hickman’s Family Farms when he was 19 years old, a post he continues to hold. Her other brothers, Clint and Billy, are the vice presidents of marketing and operations. Sharman handles the farm’s public relations.
“My day is filled with event planning and coordinating commercial shoots and media opportunities,” Sharman says. “In between times I do different speeches for students ranging from the primary to collegiate level discussing the egg farm.”
But long before Sharman was traveling the state sharing a day in the life of an egg farmer, she was learning the business herself. She began working in the hen house with her mother at the age of four. In fact, all of her siblings began their training to take over the family business as soon as they were old enough to walk.
“I would walk behind my mom in the hen house and gather the eggs she was missing on purpose,” Sharman recalled. “All of us have been in it since early youth.”
The lessons Sharman and her brothers learned on the egg farm extended beyond how to collect the eggs that got left behind — they also learned social responsibility, starting with the hens. The Hickmans are members of the United Egg Producers Certified program..
“The program is the best thing for our hens,” Sharman said. “Without the hens, we don’t have any products. We will continue to focus on minimizing disease and injury to the hens.”
The Hickmans also sponsor several charitable organizations, including the breast cancer, heart and cystic fibrosis foundations. They donate eggs each year for local Easter egg hunts and host the annual Egg Drop Day celebration at the Wildlife World Zoo to celebrate National Egg Month and offer tips on keeping youngsters safe.
The Hickmans now have their own cause for celebration as a new wave of diet plans hitting the market hail eggs as a healthy way to lose weight.
“Eat eggs for breakfast or at least once a day,” Sharman said. “They’re good for your body.”
Sharman and her brothers also have another message for consumers.
“Our family puts our name on our eggs and that means a lot to us,” Sharman said. “We take pride in supplying one of nature’s perfect products to the public. Everything that goes into that egg has been thought about from the hen all the way to the consumer.”