Javier José Vázquez Zayas was just 20 when he turned a modest family project into a free-range egg farm in Corozal. What began with 50 laying hens in a backyard shed has grown into JN Farm, which he says now houses about 1,400 chickens and produces around 1,200 eggs each day. He focuses on animal welfare and supplying quality eggs directly to local households.
Vázquez Zayas’s connection to agriculture runs deep. Raised in a farming family, he spent his childhood helping his parents grow cilantrillo and learning the rhythms of rural life. But he wanted to carve out his own path. The idea for poultry farming came unexpectedly, sparked by a suggestion from his father. He used his savings to buy his first flock and set up a temporary coop near home, naming the venture JN Farm in honor of his parents, José and Nancy.
Rapid Growth and a New Model
Within months, the project outpaced expectations. When the first hens began laying, Vázquez Zayas saw room to expand. He invested in more birds, eventually building a flock he describes as 1,400 hens and a rooster, then moved operations to a dedicated plot in the Maná neighborhood. Each morning starts at six: he opens the doors and lets the chickens roam outdoors, a daily routine basic to his approach to animal care.
JN Farm’s reported free-range model gives the chickens space to graze and scratch, with room to dust-bathe in open pastures. Vázquez Zayas believes these natural behaviors support the animals’ well-being and the quality of the eggs. “Happy hens, quality eggs,” he told Primera Hora, summing up the philosophy that guides his work.
Federal bird-housing rules in 9 C.F.R. § 3.150 set standards for facilities covered by the regulation, requiring sound structures and protection from injury, with measures to keep food and bedding free from contamination. Those general requirements are separate from free-range or organic certification; the description of JN Farm’s outdoor routine reflects its reported practices.
Based on the reported output and flock size, production averages roughly 0.86 eggs per bird per day across all 1,400 birds. That is a flock-wide arithmetic average, not a laying rate for mature hens: the figure uses the total flock, without specifying how many birds are actively laying.
Challenges of Competing in the Egg Market
The journey has brought setbacks. Vázquez Zayas says competing with lower-priced imported eggs has been difficult. “It hasn’t been easy. Imported eggs are much cheaper. But we keep fighting,” he told Primera Hora. He has also learned hard lessons, including losing several hens during a stressful move to the new coop, a reminder of the practical challenges of expanding a farm.
The demands of the business have reshaped his personal life. Once an avid cyclist, Vázquez Zayas gave up the sport to focus on the farm, often sacrificing family time to care for his flock. Despite the demands, he remains driven by the vision that first inspired him: building something of his own from the ground up.
In The Future
Vázquez Zayas is working to raise JN Farm’s profile, expand direct-to-home sales and establish a mobile sales point in Naranjito. He also plans to gradually broaden his agricultural activities. After ten months at the helm, he looks back with pride at how far he has come, and toward what comes next.
Free-range egg production remains a small but growing segment in Spain, where consumer interest in animal welfare and food quality is rising. Large-scale producers still dominate the market, but stories like Vázquez Zayas’s point to opportunities for young entrepreneurs willing to take risks and invest in farming practices centered on animal care.
