Recently, our family had taken a week off and traveled up to the mountains for a brief vacation.  The family departed on Sunday afternoon, and I joined them on Thursday evening later that week.  Besides work obligations for my “real job”, someone had to tend to the Sterling Flock!  However, when I departed on Thursday, we had made arrangements for our next-door neighbors to handle the daily morning and evening chicken chores, which they were all too happy to do!  In fact, their excitement was “over the top”!

When we arrived back on Sunday afternoon from the mountains, our chicken-sitting neighbors had some great stories but they were somewhat disappointed that the hens did not produce as many eggs while we were gone as they did when we’re home.  It had been extremely hot in Charlotte for the week, so that may have accounted for some drop in productivity.   Or it also could have been some stress in having temporary care-takers.  Who knows really??

I was walking around the yard later that same afternoon and came upon an area where one of our bantams had been laying in the pine straw beneath a large bush.  I was very surprised to see there were a dozen of the smaller eggs in a nice nesting area that the bantams had made.  Incredible!  But I was thinking …. “Are these 12 eggs all from one hen….or are they from both bantams?”  If they were from one, then that meant the eggs could have been there for 12 days….considering that the hens lay one egg a day.  Or if they were from both, then perhaps they had been there for 6 days.

My wife and I were a little uneasy not knowing how long the eggs had been there and if they had been sitting in the heat.  So we decided to throw out the eggs.

All this led me to a question I’ve been getting many times over the past few weeks:  Should you or should you not refrigerate the backyard eggs?  Before I come to any conclusion, let me give you some background on egg production from factory farms in the US.

American USDA Standards for Factory Eggs Production:

In the US, eggs produced in factories are regulated to be power-washed and immediately refrigerated.  The power washing process removes a protective film on the egg called the “bloom”.  The bloom actually serves as a natural protectant, sealing off any harmful affects.  However, when the washing occurs and removes the film, the protection is also removed.  Besides cleanliness, the USDA standards also are a preventative means of guarding against possible salmonella.

Compare this practice to that of the Europeans who rarely refrigerate their eggs.  Those eggs are not regulated to be power washed, thereby leaving the protective bloom in tact.

Which is Correct?

Well….the answer is “it depends” on which side of the fence you want to stay.  I conducted a little bit of research on my own and have determined it’s pretty much a 50/50 split.  Those that say “refrigerate right away” share concerns about the cleanliness of the eggs, the “egg track” versus the “solid waste track” of the hen, and the salmonella concerns.  Those that are comfortable with placing the backyard eggs on the countertop say the bloom protects the eggs, an egg coming through the track is sealed off from the hen’s solid waste track, and that you’d know if your flock had salmonella well before egg production.

As for our family, here’s what we do and what I would recommend:

1. Eggs from your own backyard flock can be placed on the countertop for short periods of time.  By definition, I would say “short periods of time” is not greater than two weeks.
2. Backyard eggs should not be washed until the time they are ready to be consumed.  At that point, wash the eggs in your kitchen sink under hot water, using your fingers and hands to clean off the eggs and remove the bloom.
3. I would recommend refrigerating any backyard eggs that might be on the countertop longer than two weeks.
4. If, like me, you find eggs in your backyard in some kind of field nest AND you don’t know the age of the eggs, then I would suggest disposing of the eggs.
5. And you should develop some kind of system that helps you identify what date the eggs were produced which would tell you which eggs should be eaten first.  Amazon sells a few egg skelters that allow for a “first in, first out” process.

Following these simple, few recommendations can take the worry out of any backyard chicken egg consumption thoughts!  Enjoy!