Poultry Awards Finalists - Lorna and Nick Chippindale

Attempting to break the world record for the biggest egg and spoon race would have been a success if torrential rain hadn't flooded out Harrogate's Oatlands Stray in July.

Backed by Lorna and Nick Chippindale, all of the eggs for the race were provided by their company with the slogan 'Please don't drop me!' printed on each shell. But don't be fooled into thinking this wacky event is a one-off.

Add to it the Great Yorkshire Egg Cup where school children build towers and bridges out of egg boxes; the winner this year being a model of Humber Bridge in Hull. And Pulp Fiction – no, it doesn't involve dressing up as Uma Thurman and John Travolta - but instead teaches children about recycling egg boxes.

So where did it all start? The Chippindale family has a long history in the egg sector. Great Grandfather Chippindale started at all in the 1930s by marketing and hatching chicks. Fast forward 77 years and this respected family figure still makes regular visits to the new £0.5m automated packing station to view the machine which he thinks is "bloody marvellous".

Lorna and Nick run the company with 15 contract producers on board producing, packing, marketing, selling and distributing eggs. With 90% of the business going to supermarkets - Morrisons and Booths - and the remainder off to food service businesses and wholesale distributors, many could see this business model as risky - but not Nick.