How long will eggs last if refrigerated?

[Stevo]

My girls are not slowing down one bit this winter. Actually they are laying more now then ever before. I give away our surplus eggs but since we have been snowbound here in NJ for the past 2 months my supply is growing. I have read that non refrigerated eggs last longer but with temps in the 20's everyday they are instantly refrigerated in the coop lol.

Steve

 

[ARose4Heaven]

It depends on how they were handled. Eggs can last virtually forever if the bloom has not been washed off. Well, not forever...after a while the insides dry up like a gourd. But they should be usable for a couple months.

I would recommend cracking anything more than a month old and scrambling them up for the chickens. It is a great source of protein, and the hens will love you for it!

 

[SpringChickens]

A LONG time. I know, years ago, they used to store eggs for 6 months before even selling them to consumers. This was before they had artificial lighting for coops and wanted to make sure they had enough eggs for winter. Your biggest risk is dehydration - the older the egg, the more dehydrated it will be.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Mother Earth News did an experiment in this regard and they had some make it to the six month mark. Thin, watery, and a bit dried up, but still edible.

 

[woodmort]

Well over a couple of weeks--that is standard for those in the store before they are sold. We've use unwashed eggs 4 months after collecting and there has been no sign of deterioration although the air cell was quite large. That's been the longest here.

 

[Stevo]

My wife washes every egg dirty or not. I know this removes the bloom. No egg lasts a month around here lol. Maybe 3 weeks tops.

 

[WV_Chicken]

Unwashed, refrigerated eggs is the key to long term storage. Search for the Mother Earth News article from 1977?? about this experiment. It's a great article. Washing eggs removes the bloom which allows air into the egg and starts the deterioration process.

Leave the bloom and refrigerate your eggs immediately, and they are good for 6-7 months.

 

[Cacciatore]

This is the article WV_Chicken mentions: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx

It's worth reading.

 

[Judy]

I had to buy some grocery store eggs recently. The exp date was Feb 6, and the date the egg was collected was December 24 (coded as 358 on the carton, the 358th day of the year.)

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
Yeah and some people worry about eating eggs if they're a couple of days old. For the most part it takes 4 or 5 days for most commercial eggs to reach the market.