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Dedicated. Trusted. A leader. Gordon Hunter is all of these and more. His passions have led him in many directions, and he has enjoyed diverse and successful careers in both law and agriculture. Born in 1943 into a farming family, Gordon spent his youth living and working on one of the original pre-supply management egg farms in Florenceville. The volatile nature of these early egg markets required Gordon’s father Donald to create a specialty product to support his production. Hunter’s Poultry soon became known for their unique eggs with the unusually pale-yellow yolks. A supportive, local market was established.

After graduating from Florenceville Regional High, Gordon attended the University of New Brunswick, earning a Bachelor of Arts and then a Bachelor of Civil Law in 1968. He began his career in law as an associate with Moncton’s Murphy, Murphy and Mollins. He would soon become Associate and Partner at Crocco Hunter, where he remains as counsel.

While his academic interests led him to law, Gordon’s heart was in egg production. In 1985, Gordon and his wife Brenda assumed ownership of Hunter’s Poultry. Under their leadership the operation grew to include 17,000 laying hens, a federally registered egg grading station, an egg transportation and delivery system, and a feed milling plant.

Gordon’s foray into egg industry politics began in 1985 when he joined the New Brunswick Egg Marketing Board as a Director. Within two years he took a Director’s seat on the National Farm Products Marketing Council, now known as Farm Products Council of Canada. In 1993, he was selected as New Brunswick’s representative and Director to the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency, now Egg Farmers of Canada, where he served the agriculture industry on a national level for 14 years. Gordon’s dedication to egg farming and his ability to provide leadership has made him an outstanding representative. This is evidenced by numerous re-elections by his fellow producers, who year after year demonstrated their trust in Gordon’s abilities to represent them. Gordon has been a participant in the evolution from pre- to post-supply management in the egg industry, and is a valued watch guard of producer rights in a system he calls ‘the envy of farmers all over the world.’

Gordon worked tirelessly with his boards towards the betterment of agriculture in general, and the egg industry in particular. His extensive involvement in marketing and budget committees, federal advisory meetings, executive committees, and planning teams resulted in substantial improvements for producers and consumers. Between 2002 and 2005 Gordon represented Egg Farmers of Canada at the International Egg Commission in Norway, Spain, Chile, Australia, the Netherlands, and the USA. He has also represented Canada at International Federation of Agricultural Producers’ meetings in Egypt and Washington, DC. A highlight of Gordon’s long and outstanding career was his involvement in World Trade Organization meetings. His valuable input in Geneva, Cancun, and Hong Kong well represented Canadian agriculture and egg farmers.
The community of Florenceville has benefitted from Gordon’s generosity of time and talent. As a 40-year plus member of his Rotary Club, Gordon was recognized in 2011 when he received the organization’s highest honour, being named a Paul Harris Fellow. He can be particularly proud of an initiative many years ago when the club raised over $250,000 to open River View Manor, a long term senior care facility. Outside of his involvement with church activities, local boards and committees, Gordon indulges his passion for motorcycles and restoring old cars. Gordon also spends valuable time with his family, including wife Brenda and children Greg, Patricia, and Sandy.

Nominated by the New Brunswick Egg Producers for his steadfast dedication to egg producers and the development of the egg industry in Canada, Gordon Hunter is a deserving inductee into the Atlantic Agricultural Hall of Fame.