how much to charge for eggs?

[devora]

I always laugh when I hear organic. Who really knows for sure what the feed mills are grinding? And it's all organic anyway, whether the grain has been chemically fertilized or manure fertilized. And if it was manure fertilized, whose to say the cow ate organic feed?

Well, in CA "organic" is big business and there are strict legal definitions of what constitutes it.

I'm guessing commercial pesticides disqualify use of the term.

 

[Davaroo]

@davora... theres little doubt that pesticides would exclude you
One reason we originally got organic regulation (probably the main one), was misuse of the term. This was driven not solely by the USDA, but also by those engaged in the business.

"Organic" farming, in the context we are discussing here, is essentially a big club. Big Brother regulates it and keeps out the riff-raff, on behalf of the conglomerate money biz. Your welcome to join the club, but you must pass the tests and pay hefty dues to stay in it. Ostensibly, this is to protect the consumer... But it certainly protects the mass market growers from unwelcome competition.

This is why you want to avoid the term, even if you ARE totally organic in production. There are penalties for taking money and calling yourself organic, when you are not in the club.

This bastardizes the holistic concepts behind offering organic goods to your local consumer base, really, but as you note.... It's big business.

 

[Cindy in PA]

Just say you use organic feed if that's what you use. No one can question that. As far as selling for $2, eggs in the store are over $2/dozen & I refuse to sell for less than the store. People around here want everything cheap, so they don't buy my eggs. Do what works for you.

 

[Davaroo]

Just say you use organic feed if that's what you use. No one can question that. As far as selling for $2, eggs in the store are over $2/dozen & I refuse to sell for less than the store. People around here want everything cheap, so they don't buy my eggs. Do what works for you.

Great point - don't chop your prices to stir up demand. This is temporary, because as soon as you raise them, the customer leaves.
Meanwhile, your costs remain the same.

Remember, though, you aren't just selling eggs. You are selling a particular package of value, to a particular client.
Some eggs are $2 in the store - I can get them for $1.75 here. This is possible because of scale - the producers process millions of them, so the cost per dozen is kept low.

But the ones that CERTAIN people want (the brown, cage free, organic foodist, hyped-up ones) - are $4 dollars and more. It is THESE people who are your customers. You already know they are out there and you dont have to convince them. It is a mistake to try and sell your eggs to people who only want the $1.50 ones.

You will do better if you put forth the effort attracting the right kind of customer, instead of just offering your eggs at large.

 

[devora]

@davora... theres little doubt that pesticides would exclude you

What? Sorry, I don't quite get this...

 

[marlo1968]

An immigrant with no education asked his boss for a promotion.
"Sorry, but you can't count or read - I can't promote you. You'll have to keep sweeping the floors."

"But, boss, I just want to work on the loading dock."

"Sorry, there's nothing I can do."

On the way home and feeling dejected, the guy bought a small box of apples as a present for his wife. She loved apples.
When he arrived at his tenement, he sat down to eat an apple while he waited for his wife.

A man walking by spotted the fruit and said to him, "Hey, how much for two of those apples?"
"I dunno," said the immigrant - "what'll you give me?"
The man gave him a dollar and told him to keep the change. Before long several people had stopped and bought apples, and soon his box was empty.

The next day he bought two boxes and went uptown. Many people stopped and wondered what his apples cost. His answer was always the same: "What'll you give?"

Within a month he had quit his job and started selling apples. Soon he had a fruit stand, and then three. Within ten years he had an organic grocery store and after twenty years, an entire chain of them. He had become a very successful business man, by then.

At his retirement party years later, everyone marveled at how far he had come, an uneducated immigrant.
He was asked what he thought he might have become if he had gotten an education.

With a twinkle in his eye, he answered... "A loading dock worker."

===================================================================================

When in doubt about pricing something, ask people what they'll give.
If its not enough, negotiate. If it satisfactory, you got a deal.

Either way - you'll find out what it is worth.

This works for eggs, cars or anything else you want to sell.

funny and true, I charge $3/doz white and brown eggs, $4 doz blue and green eggs, and give a 50c discount for bringing their own carton (most ppl do)

 

[raymondjames]

I charge 2$ / half dozen
(4$ / dozen)

not all the hens have started yet so the price is high

 

[Eddy Chicken]

I'm charging $5.00 per dozen for all different sizes. It's easier to charge $5 because I don't have to make change all the time. There are only 3 kinds of buyers; people who want cheap and nothing more, people who want the best and will pay for it no matter what, and people who want the best but need to find out why your product is the best before they buy it. I fall into the last catagory. I'd rather spend extra for something I know is better. Show your customers how much better farm fresh free range eggs are over store bought mass produced eggs http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/2007-10-01/Tests-Reveal-Healthier-Eggs.aspx .

 

[Rock Home Isle]

Here in north-central Colorado, the local Farmer's Markets and CSA's sell their eggs for about $3.50 to $4.50 a dozen.

 

[hearts34]

Anyone noticed a price drop on grocery store eggs? Locally around here various stores are running sales .79 dozen

I think they are feeling the pinch of the backyard chicken craze.