Flax seeds? Japanese eggs?

[Amomandacoop]

New chicken owner and new to threads. I did see a thread on flax seed feeding but it was pages and pages long. Too much info, so I thought I would ask here.

When we visited Japan the soft and hard boiled egg’s darker orange yolk were amazing! My hubby looked it up and found they feed flax seed’s. I also think it could be the type of chicken or feed. Any thoughts?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

To me... flax seeds are a bit high in fat and would be a treat NOT for daily consumption. They will be lacking many major nutrients. I would consider sprouting them.

Some feeds include marigold extract in them to give the appearance of dark orange yolks. Birds fed white corn or wheat will have paler yolks than those fed yellow corn. Free range birds may vary in yolk color as some will spend more time at the feeder than foraging green stuff. And some are just more active foragers getting a wider variety causing more color in the yolk. Wider foraging equals darker yolks. I think even paprika will give you the appearance of dark yolks. Some things will pass their red pigment to eggs while others won't.

And yes, I do believe breed has impact... but, were they even chicken eggs? Some species have more yolk to white ratio giving the egg a much richer flavor.

Flax seed... looks to be getting it's energy (calories) from about 14% protein and 70% fat...

Nutrition Facts
Flaxseed
Amount Per 1 tbsp, whole (10.3 g)

Calories 55
Total Fat 4.3 g
Saturated fat 0.4 g
Polyunsaturated fat 3 g
Monounsaturated fat 0.8 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 3 mg
Potassium 84 mg
Total Carbohydrate 3 g
Dietary fiber 2.8 g
Sugar 0.2 g
Protein 1.9 g

Best wishes!

 

[townchicks]

I've offered flax seed to my birds as a treat, they will eat a small amount, but they don't go nuts about it. In other words, they don't think it is a treat.

 

[coach723]

Another issue with flax in large amounts is it can cause a fishy taste in the eggs. It doesn't ALWAYS happen, but it can. Other things that are high in omega-3's can also cause the fishy taste/smell, just something to be aware of.
https://www.starmilling.com/blog/eggs-tasting-a-little-fishy/
https://www.theartofdoingstuff.com/do-your-eggs-taste-fishy-its-the-curse-of-the-omegas/