Farm fresh eggs – better tasting, healthier alternative to “factory eggs”

Just what you were expecting from a blog that focuses on travel gear, software, and productivity:  a post about eggs.  Give me a minute or two, please;  I think this is worth your time…

Consider the supermarket egg.  Where does it come from?  Like nearly everything available at retail, it comes from a factory.  Large egg producers.  Thousands and thousands of chickens, in cages, and in some cases, in deplorable conditions.

I’m no raving PETA member, but in researching this post I Googled “egg industry exposed” and “battery cages” and found a number of horrific “undercover” videos exposing the conditions at some egg producers.  I don’t know if this is representative of the industry, but I hope it’s not.

There’s an alternative:  the farm fresh egg, or farm egg.  Farm eggs differ significantly from the factory type:  they vary in color and, depending upon the farmer’s chickens’ ages, in size.  They taste better. (More on this in a moment.)

Farm eggs are the product of “free range” chickens which are free to roam the pasture or yard, eating a varied  diet including grass, grains, greens, and an occasional grasshopper or bug.  They aren’t fed antibiotics.  They aren’t kept in cramped cages.  The product of this approach varies dramatically from the factory egg.  Farm eggs have firmer, generally larger yolks that are a deeper hue than factory eggs – almost deep orange in color.  In the image below, a factory egg is at top, a farm egg at the bottom:

Although the white of a farm egg doesn’t taste much different than that from conventional factory eggs, the yolks are creamier in texture, with a richer, more nuanced flavor.  Hardly a model of food photography, the image below nevertheless makes it easy to pick out one from the other:

Some argue that farm eggs are contain greater amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, and are lower in cholesterol than factory eggs.   Some studies have been conducted, and there are numerous articles on this subject on the web; here’s a link to one:  Are Free Range Eggs a Healthier Alternative to Eggs?

Health benefits or not, they taste better and certainly seem like a healthier, more ethical alternative to battery cage-produced eggs.

But where do you get them?

First, I’ve noticed that most supermarkets, in addition to regular eggs, offer eggs that are labeled “cage free”, “farm eggs”, “free range” and the like.  I can’t vouch for the authenticity of those claims. If the Super Wal-Mart is selling “farm fresh” eggs, I’m skeptical.   In any event, it’s moot, as I’d suggest a more direct approach:  if there’s a farmers market in your area, go to it and ask around.  One of the vendors will have farm eggs available, or will know someone who does, almost guaranteed.

I asked a couple of vendors at our farmers market, and within minutes was chatting with a woman selling produce who also sells farm eggs; asking around at work, I discovered a coworker who does as well.   Another option would be to check with the cooperative extension at a local university; simply Google “cooperative extension” and the name of your town or city.

A word or two about cost:  Our local mega supermarket sells standard issue factory eggs for $1.12 a dozen.  They also offer eggs labeled “farm fresh” for $1.42 a dozen.  My coworker sells me a dozen farm eggs for $2 a dozen.   For me, it’s a no brainer.  I know the farmer.  I have the eggs within a couple of days of their being laid.  I have no concerns about how the chickens were treated, or their diet. It enables me to exert a bit more control over what I eat.  Oh yeah:  the eggs are delicious.

If you’ve never tried farm eggs, see if you can find a source.  Try them once, and you very well may never opt for “factory” eggs again.

…and if you’ve tried them or otherwise have had experiences with free range eggs (or chickens), please comment.