How to prep eggs for sale?

[jfouse]

Hey everyone, I'm a newbie here. We jumped into the backyard chicken thing last spring with five RI Reds and five Easter Eggers. We've got a decent size family (eight kids, another on the way), so we figured it wouldn't be hard to keep up with the egg output, but now that spring's started and the final few girls who weren't quite laying yet have started getting in gear, well...we've got a few eggs.

We're already digging for more recipes and I'm planning to scramble some to feed back to them, but I've also considered the idea of selling some. What I'm wondering is what I'd need to do to properly do that, mostly in terms of cleaning and storing. When I collect them, if they're essentially clean (just brush off any pine shavings and whatnot) I just put them straight in the fridge. If they're dirty at all, I run hot water over them (read something somewhere about the water needing to be warmer than the inside of the egg to prevent bacteria being thermally pulled/pushed through the shell membrane) and spray with a vinegar/water solution I keep handy for cleaning produce. Dry them off, pop them in the fridge. I know they don't even need to be refrigerated for awhile, but I figure it can't hurt.

So what am I missing? We live in Virginia, if that has a bearing on any legal perspectives anyone has. Thanks for any input or wisdom anyone has to share!

- Joel

 

[Mahonri]

Sounds like you've got it figured out.

 

[ralleia]

I can empathize. We're a family of three, and last fall I let the sad-looking eyes of a dejected broody hen guilt me into placing an order of egglayers. Minimum order is 24 chicks. Now, with 40 hens we are being buried alive in eggs at the rate of 21 to 25 a day. I've even taken to consuming several a day raw to slightly reduce the effect.

I'd like to sell a few, however Nebraska requires a license and that the eggs be graded by size and quality, handling requirements and other red tape. We end up giving most of ours away--occasionally we sell some informally.

There are probably some requirements in your state that you should consider. With eight kids, you might be able to get more hens and let those who are interested run a little business.

 

[donrae]

I don't know about state regs, but when I was selling eggs I just made sure they were clean. Like you said, brush off, wash if needed, rotate to use the older ones first. And I'd always make the cartons as colorful as I could!

 

[Mattemma]

I didn't know about the vinegar. I just wash off the poo and put them in egg cartons when they are dry. I ran out of cartons,so I just have them in bowls. I pick through them and give the *nice* looking eggs to people whether they by them or just get them free. Lol, I have given eggs to a librarian,pizza deliery driver,and my furnance guy to name a few. I love giving away eggs.Shhhh,dh thinks I only sell.Only a few people buy and sometimes I give THEM free eggs too.

I always give the nice ones,and tell them if there are any issues with an egg to just let me know and I will replace them. I would give a few free for a bad egg,but thusfar no rotten or wormy eggs. God help me when we get wormy eggs!

 

[annep]

First, from one big family Mama to another! Congrats on #9! I have 8, the last pregnancy was twins, so I am looking forward to a break..They are almost 1...Anyhoo, I just make them look pretty when we sell them..I give some to some nuns, and I dont bother washing them off..They know to wash them if they need it right before they use them, and it does not bother them to do it. But, if I were selling to the general public, who's used to pretty eggs, I would make them pretty...

 

[ralleia]

Quote:
There are wormy eggs? How? I don't ever want to find one!

 

[Double-0 Chicken]

I wash ours with warm/hot water if they have stuck on pine shavings...usually they are clean from the nesting box. Found one in the compost pile last night..that one will get washed

 

[sgtmom52]

Quote:
I think I would skip this step. Even though it is probably a weak solution ~ vinegar dissolves eggs shells! Just a little vinegar may open pores or weak spots allowing bacteria to enter.

There is an neat experiment you can do with your kids where you put a raw egg in vinegar and several hours later the shell will be gone leaving the rest of the egg inside the membrane.

Vinegar will dissolve an eggshell, but leave the membrane intact, which means you can remove the eggshell but leave the egg intact, and yes I'm referring to a raw egg! The reason for this effect is due to the acetic acid in the vinegar. The egg shell is made up of calcium carbonate, the acetic acid breaks the two apart letting the shell dissolve into the vinegar. The calcium ions will float way from the egg into the vinegar while the carbonate turns into carbon dioxide, you're looking at the carbon dioxide when you try this at home, it's the bubbles that form on the egg.​

 

[annep]

I think I would skip this step. Even though it is probably a weak solution ~ vinegar dissolves eggs shells! Just a little vinegar may open pores or weak spots allowing bacteria to enter.

There is an neat experiment you can do with your kids where you put a raw egg in vinegar and several hours later the shell will be gone leaving the rest of the egg inside the membrane.



We used to call this making a rubber egg..Always thought it was so cool!