From Coop To Kitchen

From Coop To Kitchen

July 17, 2022

(Me bringing eggs from the coop to the kitchen!)

Face it: nobody wants dirty eggs. There's a greater chance of contamination from salmonella or E. coli when an egg has poop or even dirt on it.

So keeping the eggs that your chickens lay clean is important for the health of your family.

It's best not to wash fresh eggs until just before using them, so taking some simple steps to ensure the eggs are clean when you collect them is important. And here's why:

The last step in a chicken's egg laying process involves the application of a thin, nearly invisible film on the surface of the eggshell called the "bloom".

This bloom helps to keep air and bacteria from penetrating the eggshell, thereby ensuring the egg's freshness and edibility.  Washing the egg removes the bloom, so optimally you don't want to wash the eggs from your backyard flock unless absolutely necessary.

Once an egg is washed, it has to be refrigerated, but unwashed, an egg will last out on the counter at room temperature for several weeks, or refrigerated for several months - far longer than washed eggs.

Chicken coops and runs aren't necessarily the cleanest places and no one wants to be bringing eggs covered in poop, mud or even material from broken eggs into their kitchen, so how do you ensure that your eggs are clean when you collect them? Here are 5 tips for keeping your eggs clean from coop to kitchen:

1. Don't allow your hens to sleep in the nesting boxes.
2. Refresh the nesting box bedding each morning.
3. Locate your nesting boxes on the wall opposite the coop pop door.
4. Discourage broodies from sitting on non-fertile eggs.
5. Collect eggs as often as possible.

These tips should help ensure that your eggs are nice and clean right from the coop straight to your kitchen, so they don't require washing and will stay fresh longer!