On the South Lawn on April 2, the American Egg Board (AEB) supported the 140th White House Easter Egg Roll by:
- Donating 30,000 hard-boiled and dyed eggs for attendees to enjoy as EggPops and use in the Egg Roll
- Taking kids and their parents on the egg’s journey with the Hen to Home exhibit, and
- Presenting the 41st Commemorative Egg to the First Lady of the United States on behalf of America’s egg farmers.
This year, the AEB has a record number of egg farmers from across the country on hand to answer attendees’ questions about modern egg farming and incredible signage through South Lawn.
“Easter would not be Easter without eggs. And thanks to the generosity of America’s egg farmers, the White House Easter Egg Roll is brimming with real eggs,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. “Our nation’s egg farmers — and their incredible eggs — are an annual fixture on the South Lawn of the White House for this time-honored and uniquely American holiday tradition.”
Here’s a look at a few key areas:
EggPops and the Egg Roll
Half of the 30,000 hard-boiled eggs were used for rolling, dyeing and sampling. Kids and parents alike love EggPops — hard-boiled eggs served on a carrot, celery or stick. The AEB also had several flavor stations across the South Lawn. Kids and parents could dust and dip their eggs at these stations. All the day’s volunteers wore hats and aprons donated by America’s egg farmers.
But what is the actual Egg Roll? The Egg Roll, itself, is simply a race that takes place during the day’s festivities where children push an egg through the grass with a long-handled spoon. Variations of egg rolling contests are played around the world.
Hen to home interactive exhibit
This exhibit highlights modern egg farming in a fun, whimsical way. Attendees took pictures with the Hollywood Hens — realistic imitation hens — and in photo cut outs that showcase how eggs move from today’s farms to our plates. Farmers are also on-site to answer questions like how many eggs were donated to the Egg Roll and what time of day do hens lay the most eggs.
Also, new this year, the AEB hosted a virtual reality experience — an immersive video that placed viewers directly into a cage-free hen house, showing them the process of how eggs move from the hen to your home.
A play kitchen where children got hands-on experience moving eggs from the fridge, to the stove, to their breakfast, lunch and dinner plates. A new “Step & Repeat” created additional photo opportunities on the South Lawn. Eggy, the popular Incredible Egg Character, and his egg-inspired friends also took pictures with kids and adults.
Commemorative egg
The AEB Chair Jeff Hardin and President & CEO Anne L. Alonzo made the presentation of the 41st Annual Commemorative Egg, on behalf of America’s egg farmers, to First Lady Melania Trump.
The inspiration behind the 41st Commemorative Egg is “Wings of Prayer.” Master Egg Artist Deborah Grassel was so inspired by the First Lady’s elegance that she brought it to life in the ornate nature of the design. Beautiful angel wings open to expose an intricate scene with a handmade bridge, where if you look closely, you can see a Koi fish swimming in the water beneath. Grassel resides in the Austin, Texas area.
America’s egg farmers have made a presentation to every Administration since the tradition started with the Carters.
