A survey of healthy adults conducted by the Egg Nutrition Center shows that nearly one out of four (24 percent) of Americans still avoid eggs for fear of dietary cholesterol, even though 30 years of research has never linked egg consumption to heart disease.[1] The Clinton Administration even proposed that warning labels be put on eggs to alert consumers to the possible serious illnesses.
Recent science has proven that not to be true. Eggs are nature's perfect food but major concerns do and should persist about the quality of the eggs themselves and the quality of life of the chickens that produce those eggs. As with most foods, their nutrient content and flavor depends on what the hens eat and how they are raised.
As Greg Atkinson wrote in the Seattle Times Taste magazine, "Most eggs are factory-farmed and are more like products of industry than nature." Hens are packed into little egg factories with their beaks cut off and with no space to move. Their "product" never touches human hands until we bring them home.
Labels Only Confuse the Issue
- "Animal Care Certified" - one of the biggest "greewnwashing" terms out there today - means that the hens who laid the eggs were treated in accord with guidelines created by the United Egg Producers (UEP). The problem, according to Paul Shapiro, executive director of Compassion Over Killing, is "the guidelines allow the hens to live in "battery cages" -wire cages stacked in tiers and lined in rows in large warehouses - with as many as eight hens in a cage of 67 square inches. The UEP guidelines also allow the practice of trimming chicken's beaks to prevent excessive pecking, as well as "force molting," which involves underfeeding hens to extend their capacity to lay eggs."
- "Natural" eggs are not from chickens raised on pasture, in fact there is no standardized definition.
- "Cage-free" and "Free range" doesn't necessarily mean much in terms of quality of life for hens. These labels simply mean that the hens are free to roam; could be on a barn floor, could be outside, could be only to see the outside through a tiny opening in a large coup. These term aren't regulated by the USDA and there is no guarantee that the hens have access to grass.
- "Organic" eggs come from chickens fed organic ingredients (certified under the USDA National Organic Program) and not injected with antibiotics. This label doesn't stipulate how the birds are actually raised.
Sustainability in the egg business means roosters and hens interacting and mating in a natural way. The birds need to spend their days in an environment that allows them access to sunlight, fresh air and pasture. One of the best methods are outdoor movable pens that are rotated frequently to maximize access to fresh pasture and protect the birds from predators.
According to Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry [2], eggs from pastured hens contain more omega-3 fatty acids, more beta-carotene and more vitamin A than eggs from factory hens. Additionally, from the cooks perspective, the yolks from these hens are darker and have a stronger yolk membrane that allows them to hold their shape better. The whites whip up higher are less watery and actually contain flavor. These eggs taste more "eggy", more earthy and make the most amazing fresh pasta, the richest custards and the firmest, simply poached egg you'll ever taste.
Many still think that and egg is just an egg but a really fresh egg from a free-roaming chicken is heaven.
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For more information on egg labeling issues, visit Egg Labels and Certifications: What Do They Mean by Jeanne Yacoubou in Issue Two, 2007, Vegetarian Journal.
[1] Lee A and Griffin B. Dietary cholesterol, eggs and coronary heart disease risk in perspective. Nutrition Bulletin (British Nutrition Foundation). 2006; 31:21-27.
[2] Jörg Schlatterer and Dietmar E. BreithauptXanthophylls in Commercial Egg Yolks: Quantification and Identification by HPLC and LC-(APCI)MS Using a C30 Phase. Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, 2006; 54: 2267-2273.
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