Eggs that have not been washed and have been stored in the fridge can last a LONG time. At the polar ice stations, the first night there, they have an egg dipping party. They take dozens and dozens of eggs and dip them in wax or oil, and then keep them for 4 months or so. And those are just washed store eggs.
I would have no problem eating an egg of mine that was clean and had been refrigerated for 8-9 weeks. Anything older I'd probably feed back to the hens. I won't sell eggs that are more than a week, week and a half old, though. My customers are paying high prices for fresh.
There is a proper way to wash eggs. Here is information from the Vermont Extension Service:
# Wash eggs before you put them in the fridge. Never cool eggs rapidly before they are cleaned. The egg shell will contract and pull any dirt or bacteria on the surface deep into the pores when cooled. Try to keep the temperature relatively constant until they are washed.
# Wash eggs as soon as you collect them. This helps limit the opportunity of contamination and loss of interior quality.
# Wash eggs with water 10 degrees warmer than the egg. This will make the egg contents swell and push the dirt away from the pores of the egg. If you have extremely dirty eggs, a mild detergent approved for washing eggs can be used.
Never let eggs sit in water. Once the temperature equalizes the egg can absorb contaminants out of the water.
# Cool and dry eggs quickly after washing. Store eggs, large end up, at 50-55ÉF and at 75% relative humidity. If eggs sit at room temperature (75ÉF) they can drop as much as one grade per day. If fertile eggs are kept at a temperature above 85ÉF for more than a few hours the germinal disc (embryo) can start to develop. If fertile eggs are kept above 85ÉF over two days the blood vessels of the embryo may become visible.
If eggs are stored properly in their own carton or other stable environment they should hold a quality of Grade A for at least four weeks.
I would have no problem eating an egg of mine that was clean and had been refrigerated for 8-9 weeks. Anything older I'd probably feed back to the hens. I won't sell eggs that are more than a week, week and a half old, though. My customers are paying high prices for fresh.
There is a proper way to wash eggs. Here is information from the Vermont Extension Service:
# Wash eggs before you put them in the fridge. Never cool eggs rapidly before they are cleaned. The egg shell will contract and pull any dirt or bacteria on the surface deep into the pores when cooled. Try to keep the temperature relatively constant until they are washed.
# Wash eggs as soon as you collect them. This helps limit the opportunity of contamination and loss of interior quality.
# Wash eggs with water 10 degrees warmer than the egg. This will make the egg contents swell and push the dirt away from the pores of the egg. If you have extremely dirty eggs, a mild detergent approved for washing eggs can be used.
Never let eggs sit in water. Once the temperature equalizes the egg can absorb contaminants out of the water.
# Cool and dry eggs quickly after washing. Store eggs, large end up, at 50-55ÉF and at 75% relative humidity. If eggs sit at room temperature (75ÉF) they can drop as much as one grade per day. If fertile eggs are kept at a temperature above 85ÉF for more than a few hours the germinal disc (embryo) can start to develop. If fertile eggs are kept above 85ÉF over two days the blood vessels of the embryo may become visible.
If eggs are stored properly in their own carton or other stable environment they should hold a quality of Grade A for at least four weeks.
