Selling eggs from your farm sounds simple, right? Collect eggs, put them in a carton, and sell. But what about quality control? Backyard chicken farmers are exempt from many regulations, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore quality. And if you are buying farm eggs, you should get to know your farmer and ask about their quality control standards.
A fresh farm egg tastes wonderful and is more nutritious than the six-week-old eggs from the store. But the store egg has one strong advantage: quality control. Commercial egg producers have regulations requiring them to sort, grade, candle, wash, store, and label eggs, as well as time limits on packaging and selling.
In comparison, backyard chicken farmers have very few regulations. If you are selling eggs from your farm, you just need to ensure they are safe for human consumption. Here in Ohio, Revised Code 925.10 exempts you from the regulations.
“Producers selling only shell eggs of their own hens’ production on the premises where produced or selling directly to hatcheries are exempted from sections 925.01 to 925.13 of the Revised Code.”
Here are some suggested steps to help you prepare and sell a high-quality fresh egg:
1. Collect Every Day. You can’t claim your eggs are fresh if you aren’t sure when they were laid. Eggs left in lay boxes can be cracked by hens. Temperature changes may freeze eggs or cause condensation that damages the protective bloom coating. In spring, hens may go broody and sit on eggs. If fertilized, development begins within hours, and is noticeable after about 3 days. And what about that clutch you found in the barn? If you aren’t reasonably certain the eggs were laid that day, toss them or save them for yourself.
2. Inspect Each Egg. Farm eggs have a variety of issues. Some will have hairline cracks, often caused by the hen. Some will have very thin shells. Some shells won’t develop completely. Look at each one closely. If you wouldn’t appreciate being sold that egg, then don’t sell it to someone else. Rejected eggs can be fed back to your chickens, fed to pets, eaten by yourself, or thrown away.
3. Sort the Eggs. Sort clean eggs from dirty. We sort small eggs from medium and larger since we choose not to sell cartons that include small eggs. An egg scale is a great tool to sort sizes quickly. Our small eggs are donated to a local food pantry, given as gifts, or saved for own use.
4. Wash Dirty Eggs. Eggs get dirty, especially if your hens free range. If you sell unwashed/unrefrigerated eggs, your customers don’t want to open the carton to find mud (poop) covered eggs. Separate clean eggs from dirty eggs, and wash the dirty ones. Cleaning dirty eggs with anything moist will destroy nature’s protective coating, and the egg will have to be refrigerated. So if you’re going to wipe the egg with a damp cloth, you might as well wash it. Wash eggs in water that is at least 90 degrees F. After washing, you’ll need to refrigerate to at least 45 degrees F. Some customers will appreciate the washed eggs, since they refrigerate all eggs they bring home, washed or not!
5. Label Your Carton. In Ohio, backyard chicken owners are exempt from labeling requirements, but it’s still a good idea to create a label for your cartons. A label reminds people where they bought their eggs, and tells them you care about what’s inside the carton. Include information like:
- Farm name and address
- Size and Grade (such as “Mixed Size” or “Medium and Larger” and “Ungraded”)
- Date of packaging or date the egg was laid
- Safe Handling Instructions, specifically “To prevent illness from bacteria: keep eggs refrigerated, cook eggs until yolks are firm, and cook foods containing eggs thoroughly.”
6. Sell Only Fresh Eggs. Sell your eggs within a certain number of days. Our unwashed eggs are sold within 10 days of being laid. After that, they are either donated or washed and refrigerated for sale to a commercial customer. Pick a limit you are comfortable with and stick to it.
It’s very difficult to look at an egg that cost you $.25 to $.50 in feed to produce, and then throw it out. But if you want to build trust, create loyal customers, and grow your customer base, create your own quality control program and live by it. And let your customers know about it.
If you buy farm fresh eggs, ask your farmer about the steps they follow to sell you the freshest egg possible.