Clean Coop=Clean Nest=Clean Eggs That Don't Need Washing

[Outta Here]

If your coop and nest is clean, your eggs will be clean and seldom if ever need washing. The only reason eggs get poop on them is if the chickens bring it in on their feet (from a dirty coop) or poop while laying (rare). I've collected and eaten or sold about 400 eggs in the past couple months. They come from the nest spotless and shiny, protected with a lovely bloom, ready for the carton or to sit in a wire basket on my counter. (Unwashed chicken eggs stay good a month unrefrigerated. Washed eggs must be refrigerated immediately.) Sometimes as I carry my treasured harvest from the chicken house, the eggs are so pretty I might even give one a kiss! I've never washed any eggs yet, either before I cook them or before I sell them.
The way to achieve this is easy:
1. Never let chickens spend the night in the nest box
2. Keep fresh straw, grass hay, or other bedding in the nest.
3. Immediately remove it if a chicken does happen to poop in the nest (this is rare).
4. Have at least 3-4 nest boxes per chicken and train them to use them all, not crowd into one. Whether you have 3 chickens or 300, the traffic per box and ease of keeping them clean will be the same.

 

[CEO]

If your coop and nest is clean, your eggs will be clean and never need washing. The only reason eggs get poop on them is if the chickens bring it in on their feet (from a dirty coop) or poop while laying (rare). I've collected, eaten or sold about 400 eggs in the past couple months. They come from the nest spotless and shiny, protected with a lovely bloom, ready for the carton or to sit in a wire basket on my counter. (Unwashed chicken eggs stay good a month unrefrigerated. Washed eggs must be refrigerated immediately.) Sometimes as I carry my treasured harvest from the chicken house, the eggs are so pretty I might even give one a kiss! I've never washed any eggs yet, either before I cook them or before I sell them.
The way to achieve this is easy:
1. Never let chickens spend the night in the nest box
2. Keep fresh straw, grass hay, or other bedding in the nest.
3. Immediately remove it if a chicken does happen to poop in the nest (this is rare).
4. Have at least 3-4 nest boxes per chicken and train them to use them all, not crowd into one. Whether you have 3 chickens or 300, the traffic per box and ease of keeping them clean will be the same.

Kissing eggs isn’t a good idea just sayin’

 

[CEO]

If your coop and nest is clean, your eggs will be clean and never need washing. The only reason eggs get poop on them is if the chickens bring it in on their feet (from a dirty coop) or poop while laying (rare). I've collected, eaten or sold about 400 eggs in the past couple months. They come from the nest spotless and shiny, protected with a lovely bloom, ready for the carton or to sit in a wire basket on my counter. (Unwashed chicken eggs stay good a month unrefrigerated. Washed eggs must be refrigerated immediately.) Sometimes as I carry my treasured harvest from the chicken house, the eggs are so pretty I might even give one a kiss! I've never washed any eggs yet, either before I cook them or before I sell them.
The way to achieve this is easy:
1. Never let chickens spend the night in the nest box
2. Keep fresh straw, grass hay, or other bedding in the nest.
3. Immediately remove it if a chicken does happen to poop in the nest (this is rare).
4. Have at least 3-4 nest boxes per chicken and train them to use them all, not crowd into one. Whether you have 3 chickens or 300, the traffic per box and ease of keeping them clean will be the same.

The title of this thread isn’t very good guidance and is misleading. Eggs must be washed before cooking and some states as said a live REQUIRE you to wash eggs.

 

[Folly's place]

Nice in theory, not so true in practice. If there's one poo spot in their bedding, it will land on a hen's foot and into that nest box!
Roll-away nest boxes do help, but washing and refrigerating eggs is done for very good reasons!!!
The only eggs that aren't washed and refrigerated here are clean eggs meant for hatching.
Mary

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Only for commercial sale. You don't have to wash any eggs if you're only feeding your family. You can even use the nasty ones (not that is recommend that)

The title of this thread isn’t very good guidance and is misleading. Eggs must be washed before cooking and some states as said a live REQUIRE you to wash eggs.

 

[CEO]

Only for commercial sale. You don't have to wash any eggs if you're only feeding your family. You can even use the nasty ones (not that is recommend that)

I m a w a r e. Any type of selling should follow sanitary guidelines though.

 

[Folly's place]

You bet!
And I like clean for us too, why take unnecessary chances?
Mary

 

[MTKitty]

Nice in theory, not so true in practice. If there's one poo spot in their bedding, it will land on a hen's foot and into that nest box!
Roll-away nest boxes do help, but washing and refrigerating eggs is done for very good reasons!!!
The only eggs that aren't washed and refrigerated here are clean eggs meant for hatching.
Mary

Do you wash them soon after gathering or do you wash them right before using them?

 

[Poultrybonkers]

I never wash my eggs theyre never that dirty as i have a rollaway and a sand coop

 

[Outta Here]

The Code of Federal Regulations defines nest run eggs for sale as such: Nest-run eggs means eggs that have been packed as they come from the production facilities without having been washed, sized and/or candled for quality, with the exception that some checks, dirties, or other obvious undergrades may have been removed."

Unless a state has its own laws requiring nest run eggs to be wash, they do not have to be washed, including my home state of Arizona:" Nest Run Egg Producers: These small producers of eggs, by statute, are limited to 750 dozens of nest run eggs (unwashed and ungraded) per year. They are required to register with the Department of Agriculture(link is external). There is no fee for this. In addition to registering, they are required to properly label their eggs and keep them under refrigeration at 45 degrees F or less. Nest Run Producers are prohibited from using trademarked or trade name cartons belonging to other companies."

Check your state ordinances.

Whether you wash an egg before cooking is a personal choice, not a law. I've been eating unwashed eggs every day for 45 years.