Farm fresh eggs vs Store bought

[2die4]

Yesterday I finally got some farm fresh eggs from a coworker that was more than happy to unload them. As a prepper and a weightlifter, I wasn't going to turn down free protein rich food! I did a side by side comparison before cracking them, and the farm fresh egg was only slightly bigger than the store bought egg. When I cracked them both the comparison was much more noticeable. The store yolk was much more florescent yellow and runny looking. Egg white was minimal. The Farm egg had a much bigger yolk with a darker yellow/orange tint to it. There also seemed to be a lot more egg white as well.

Bottom line: I hope I get more fresh eggs from my worker and if I can afford it, I'm buying farm fresh eggs whenever I can.


Left=Store egghttp://s21.postimg.org/l268bkhub/egg.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/l268bkhub/)Right=Farm egg

[rentprop1]

did you notice any difference when you went to crack it, if not double check again next time you do a comparison, supposedly store bought eggs even the " supposed " free range EB crap is pumped so full of antibiotics they said an easy way to tell is the store eggs are harder to crack, they add calcium to the feed to make the eggs slightly harder so there is less shipping loss

there is also a test about floating them in salt water, but I not sure how to tell, have to ask the egg farmer

[2die4]

Funny you asked that. The store egg got cracked first then the farm egg. I used the same force for both eggs. I nearly obliterated the farm egg. The farm egg was way softer than the farm egg.

[helomech]

No comparison, I won't even eat store bought eggs anymore. The taste is so much better.

[bacpacker]

I agree with your evaluation for the most part. Our eggs have much larger and darker yolks. Much better tasting as well. My disagreement would be in egg size, ours varies quite a bit. Some are what I would grade a medium size all the way up to some that barely fit in an extra large carton. I assume that this is from different hens and some drop different size eggs.

One other thing, our eggs have fairly tough shells, some more than others, but they are at least as tough as store bought eggs. Other than some occasional Oyster shell, I don't give them anything other than scraps, and cracked corn feed. Interesting to hear of the differences

[LUNCHBOX]

BP, I agree that the sizes vary but usually due to the different breeds and ages I raised. Another thing I've noticed was that the farm fresh egg will fry hard quicker (maybe due to the thickness of the yolks) As far as taste....don't take our work for it, try them.

[bacpacker]

LB I have all the same breed hens, and they are close to the same age. They do vary in their size though thats all I can figure out.

[Jimmy24]

I have all White Leg Horns. They offer, for me, the best combo for chickens, meat and eggs. I get close to 50% double yolks in monster size eggs all the time. I have used this breed since the early 90s and they have been consistent in their egg size and quality. Also if you have a rooster with your hens, the yolks will always be much darker and more of a deep orange, least mine always have, due to fertilization.

It is apples and oranges to me as far as size goes. You can purchase extra small to jumbo size eggs in the store.

Freshness is the key element, IMHO. If your yolk stands up when you crack it into whatever you’re cooking it is fresh, store bought or yard eggs. If it is flat looking, it is not fresh at all and it will have a defiant loss of quality in taste.

Just my thoughts and experience.

Jimmy

[bacpacker]

I raise Buff Orpington's and they seem to be a good combination bird as well. I would guess my hens weigh between 6-8lbs, The rooster died this week and I have no doubt he weighed 10-12lbs. I'll be replacing him as soon as I can locate another Buff roo.
One thing I have yet to get is a double yolk. I agree on the freshness being easy to determine. The last time we got store bought only one stood up like our fresh eggs do. Taste is no comparison between the two.

Jimmy, what do you feed your birds? I wonder if the breed is that much more likely to double yolk or if feed could contribute?

[Jimmy24]

I raise Buff Orpington's and they seem to be a good combination bird as well. I would guess my hens weigh between 6-8lbs, The rooster died this week and I have no doubt he weighed 10-12lbs. I'll be replacing him as soon as I can locate another Buff roo.
One thing I have yet to get is a double yolk. I agree on the freshness being easy to determine. The last time we got store bought only one stood up like our fresh eggs do. Taste is no comparison between the two.

Jimmy, what do you feed your birds? I wonder if the breed is that much more likely to double yolk or if feed could contribute?

Table scraps, whole corn and every once and a while some laying mash, which they hate.... I have a pretty good size outdoor run for them and I have it divided up in 4 parts, just like you do partures for cattle. I keep planting whatever I have spare seeds for and move them from one "field" to the next. They "graze it off" and I move 'em to the next pasture that's ready and replant where I just moved them from.

One important thing IMO, I keep them plenty of clean fresh water. They do drink a lot.

I only keep about a dozen or so at a time. I keep both wings clipped and put them up at night.

Jimmy

[2die4]

I'm assuming besides bugs and other seeds the birds eat in a yard the feed is quality compared to the hormone low quality filler food cocktail they feed chickens that are destined for the store shelves. Right?

[bacpacker]

I have been planning to build a larger run for mine and had been considering diving it up like you mentioned. Works for cattle, why not birds? I have also been planning on planting different crops in the pens so there is a variety of stuff for them to choose from. Even down to what grows well in summer vs winter. Just take me a little advance planning.

Mine get all our scraps, whatever they dig up or find on their own, and I keep cracked corn out for them. I have bought some mash for mine a couple of times and they just don't eat it. I really didn't see a difference in egg production either.

I do plan on trying to grow my own open pollinated corn this summer to feed them. I have a old hand crank sheller, now I just need to find a rough grinder to crack it with.

[LUNCHBOX]

All this chicken talk.....I just went and picked up 4 Rhode Island Reds today.

J24, I had few brown Leg Horns that would give double yolks often and I agree having a roo may give a healthier egg (imo)

Something else...if you do free range make sure you look for hidden laying dens. (My Heelers got plenty of eggs over their dogfood for that reason)

[Sniper-T]

hmmmm... thinking again about a chicken tractor....

fresh egg info:

In a fresh egg, the yolk stands tall and the white is thick and cloudy. In an older egg, the yolk looks flatter and breaks easily, and the white is thin and watery.

The best eggs for boiling are the ones on their way to standing up because that extra air makes peeling easier. That's why you should buy eggs for hard-cooking at least a week ahead of time.

How To Test Freshness of Eggs: A simple test in water will answer the freshness question for you. Place the egg in a bowl of water; if it lies on its side, it is very fresh. As it ages, the air pocket inside the egg grows, which buoys the egg up so it stands on one end. If the egg floats to the top, it is ready for the trash.

from here:
http://whatscookingamerica.net/Eggs/BoiledEggs.htm

[ladyhk13]

My sister has several different breeds and I end up with brown eggs (which by the way aren't any healthier than any other egg, it's a scam), blue eggs, white, cream colored, large, medium and small. I've even gotten some speckled. Each breed has it's own egg traits and the number of eggs it lays also depends upon the number of hours of sunlight there is. That's why they lay less in the winter.

[4suchatimeasthis]

I'm down to just Rhode Isl Reds, but they are faithful layers. They lay all shades of brown to cream eggs, some have speckles on them, once in a great while I will get a double yolked egg. Sometimes the eggs are oddly shaped, kinda elongated, maybe a little bumpy.

My girls love scraps, layer pellets, crushed oyster shells which they have free access to. So their shells are pretty tough, but they do get soft if I let the oyster shells run out. They love bugs and baby mice. Yes, I know, it's nasty. Also, we keep a "bug jar" in the house, often trapping wasps and such, and we put them in the fridge until they slow down (cold = hibernation), and then we feed em to the chickens. OMG, they go nuts. Grasshoppers are another favorite, lol.

They are in a tractor for now, it's protected on 3 sides from the wind and rain, and of course it's covered. We have a lot of hawks around here, and I have lost a few chickens to them, so eventually we would have to build a covered run.

Fresh eggs are wonderful! If only we had some fresh bacon to go with......

[Jimmy24]

I'm down to just Rhode Isl Reds, but they are faithful layers. They lay all shades of brown to cream eggs, some have speckles on them, once in a great while I will get a double yolked egg. Sometimes the eggs are oddly shaped, kinda elongated, maybe a little bumpy.

My girls love scraps, layer pellets, crushed oyster shells which they have free access to. So their shells are pretty tough, but they do get soft if I let the oyster shells run out. They love bugs and baby mice. Yes, I know, it's nasty. Also, we keep a "bug jar" in the house, often trapping wasps and such, and we put them in the fridge until they slow down (cold = hibernation), and then we feed em to the chickens. OMG, they go nuts. Grasshoppers are another favorite, lol.

They are in a tractor for now, it's protected on 3 sides from the wind and rain, and of course it's covered. We have a lot of hawks around here, and I have lost a few chickens to them, so eventually we would have to build a covered run.

Fresh eggs are wonderful! If only we had some fresh bacon to go with......

YUMMMMIE!!!! I LOVE ME SOME BACON!!!

I got the pork, but them feral hawgs at 70-100 pounds just don't have enogh bacon on them to make the effort....:p

Jimmy

- - - Updated - - -


All this chicken talk.....I just went and picked up 4 Rhode Island Reds today.

J24, I had few brown Leg Horns that would give double yolks often and I agree having a roo may give a healthier egg (imo)

Something else...if you do free range make sure you look for hidden laying dens. (My Heelers got plenty of eggs over their dogfood for that reason)

Are you ever so right.....:rolleyes: But what the heck, they do make the doggies coats sooo shiny...

Jimmy