Many people want to buy locally grown or raised products. Chicken eggs are a great product to buy that’s been locally grown. Sometimes the local eggs you purchase may not look exactly like the ones that you find in the store. And that’s ok, most likely they’re still very good eggs. Let’s talk about some of the differences that you might see.
Eggs should be gathered from the coop at least 3 timed a day. Cracked table eggs should be separated from the rest. Cracked and leaking eggs should not be consumed. Bacterial contamination is one of the main concerns with eggs. Cracked or leaking eggs could have contamination.
You may run across some eggs that are odd shaped. Store bought eggs will be graded for uniformity. Local grown eggs will have less uniformity, but each egg shows some of the personality of the hen that laid it. Each hen will generally lay the same size and shape of egg. Eggs that are an odd shape are ok to eat.
Some eggs may have some blood on them. Bloody eggshells normally come from hens that have just started laying eggs. Simply rinse the blood off and the eggs are ok to eat.
You may come across eggs that are extra-large. These could be double yolk eggs. Double yolk eggs have 2 yolks in them. These eggs would be graded out at the grocery store, but they are fine to eat.
Eggs come is a variety of colors. The color is generally dependent on the breed of hen. Taking a look at the earlobes on the hen can be an indicator of the eggs that hen will lay. Hens with lighter colored earlobes produce lighter colored eggs, hens with darker earlobes produce darker colored eggs. Some eggs may even come out with bands of different shades. This is because 2 eggs were close together in the shell gland pouch. Eggs of different color are ok to eat.
Speckled eggs are just from extra calcium deposits. This could be from extra calcium in the hen’s diet, or the egg shaping calcification process was disturbed. Either way, these eggs are ok to eat.
You may see some deposits in the eggshell. This is from improper nutrition or from and older hen, these eggs are ok to eat.
Wrinkles come from older hens or a hen that was disturbed while laying. These eggs are ok to eat.
Soft shell eggs can be from a dietary deficiency, heat stress, or too much salt. Soft eggs should not be eaten if they are cracked.
Another common question about eggs is should they be washed and refrigerated. Eggs will keep for about 3 weeks if they are unrefrigerated. If they are refrigerated they can last up to 15 weeks. They should be refrigerated below 45 degrees. Eggs should be washed with water that is warmer than the temperature of the egg. If the water is colder it causes the egg white to shrink potentially drawing in bacteria like salmonella. Don’t wash eggs with dish soap or scented cleaners as this can affect the taste of the egg.
If you have questions about chicken eggs contact your County Extension Office or email me at Jacob.Williams@uga.edu.