Eating fertile eggs???

[steffpeck]

Do you keep your laying hens separated from the roosters so that the eggs you eat are not fertilized??

 

[mitaha]

Nope, we eat the fertile ones and the non fertile ones... Could not tell you the difference if I wanted too...

 

[eggchel]

The only difference between a fertilized egg and a non fertilized egg is that one has the potential, if incubated, to develop a chick, and the other does not. Other than a slight difference in the appearance of the tiny tiny germinal disk (only visible upon close inspection of the yolk), they are identical in appearance, taste, nutritional value, etc.

chel



chel

 

[justusnak]

Nope, we dont seperate either. Really cant tell the difference...other than from a store bought egg...which I wont have in MY home! LOL I havent bought eggs in......hmmmm...just over a year now. I feel sorry for those store bought egg eaters! LOL

 

[4H kids and mom]

Aww justusnak....have some mercy on those of us who dont get eggs yet....we still gotta eat 'em!

As far as seperating or not, I dont plan to seperate my roos from the hens either. As long as you collect your eggs twice a day, the hens have no chance to begin incubation and the embryo (if there even is one) wont develope, and the egg will be completely fine to eat. I HAVE had chance to eat farm raised eggs and I can tell you the yolks are much richer in flavor, the whites aren't "runny" like a store boughts, and they stand up proud and tall in the pan! I cooked a farm egg and a store bought at the same time, and we could very easily tell the difference after they were cooked. The farm raised egg was WAY better!

 

[thechickenfarmer]

Does anyone know why they sell "fertilized eggs" in the grocery store? I've noticed them in the healthfood section next to the cage free and free range eggs. Is there some nutritional reason why someone wouldn't specifically seek out fertilzed eggs to eat?

Jen

 

[JamesC]

Yes, people on a "Vegan" diet will not eat fertilized eggs. Since the fertilized egg contains a very tiny embryo, it's considered meat. Go figure!!!

James

 

[samara]

I didn't realize that vegans age eggs, I think it is for vegetarians. Correct me if I'm wrong, but vegans don't eat meat, dairy, or eggs in anything.

Samara

 

[MTchick]

Samara, you are on target. Vegetarians usually eat eggs and milk, while a Vegan eats nothing processed by an animal (no milk, no eggs, not even honey in some cases).

A fertilized egg would be something a vegetarian would probably avoid on principle, although the functional difference is literally a few cells on the yolk like eggchel mentioned. So it is kind of a personal choice, I should think.

-MTchick

 

[SpottedCrow]

The only folks besides strict vegetarians that can't eat fertilized eggs are the Orthodox Jews and that's because they're not Kosher.
Eggchel's given you the best advice on this.