Eggs : How to pick them in the store

[stevesmi]

I wanted to make a thread about eggs and how to pick eggs properly at your super market. obviously if you can find eggs fresh off a family farm that is your best bet, but not all of us live in the country and have access to that. plus good quality eggs from those farms are shipped to stores locally anyway, so why not grab them the same way and save a trip?


not all eggs at your super market are created equal, and also what they say doesn't always mean what you think it means. also price doesn't necessarily equal the best quality, so just buying the most expensive eggs doesn't always work


There is something called a certified humane stamp.. the eggs can only get this stamp if they are checked on location to make sure the chickens are getting enough time to run around and be normal chickens and also fed a high quality diet and/or getting to eat bugs/worms/seeds as nature intended. I NEVER buy eggs that do not have this stamp shown below

next some people think 'cage free' means something good. it can but a lot of times it is bullshit. to be labeled cage free the chickens only have to get outside their cages for a certain amount of time. This does not prevent their beaks from being chopped off or them being fed garbage. so bottom line is just cause it says cage free doesn't mean shit. it needs to have that stamp i posted above.


next i also see vegetarian fed eggs being sold. again people think this is a good thing. it could be good, but it could be bad too. do you want your chickens eating some unnatural diet or do you want them eating bugs and worms outside where they can peck ? same goes for 'omega' eggs. just means they are fed a high omega diet. otherwise it means nothing.


bottom line is be a smart buyer of eggs.. it makes a huge difference. poor quality walmart eggs taste like chemicals for a reason, while high quality "humane friendly" eggs taste natural. it would be like comparing drinking fresh OJ to sunny Delight. not even close


you want to always look for that "humane friendly" stamp and get pasture raised chickens that get to eat what nature intended.

 

[MasonicBodybuilder]

This is a great thread. Eggs are a staple of most of our diets so this is a great bit of knowledge. I know I am guilty of just getting mine in bulk at Costco and not paying attention to them. I will make a change after reading this!

 

[muskate]

What I personally do for my eggs is buy them from a local farmer. They actually go to my church. It's about the same price as grocery store eggs and the quality isnt even comparable.

The eggs aren't certified organic or anything like that but organic doesn't really mean much. All organic means is that the hens are fed organic feed. That could be organic soy beans. Chicken should NOT be eating soy. They should be eating grains, bugs and worms.

Try to find a local farmer who you can buy eggs from. The most important thing to ask for is whether or not the chickens are given antibiotics, what they are fed, and if they have access to the outdoors or not. A good quality egg will have a bright orange egg yolk.

Eggs have a shelf life of around 3 months when stored in the fridge. I buy 4 dozen at a time.

 

[Jay Scott]

I find it amazing how different food markets & grocery stores are in US and EU.

We also have a lot of GMO products, but its never difficult to find healthy and organic foods.