g'day chookman. from what i have seen of real free range chook operations, it gets hard as they hit a level that requires outside labour.
mum,dad and the kids can tick along nicely, but keyman risk is health and aging.
in north america i have seen reports of wealthy urban consumers of free range eggs actually paying an annual 'membership fee' fee to belong to the free range egg producing enterprise. this elevates the business model from just selling a dozen eggs at a time, to selling 'green eco credits' that entitle the buyer to weekly free range eggs, and a talking point to their peer group.
