Selling Eggs???

[eastercreek]

Have any of you who sell eggs run into any government/state inspector when selling them? The only reason I ask is because we owned a small coffee/sandwich shop a couple of years ago. We sold no products that we cooked eggs for, but twice in a 1.5 year period a fellow came in that was an egg inspector. Said if we were going to sell any he needed to know where we got them from, etc. We live in NW Louisiana. It never concerned me-but now that we are getting in to the chicken hobby, I may want to consider selling eggs. Of course, there would not be many...but we would likely place a sign on our farm sign down at the road. Will this alert the egg police, or do I have anything to worry about?

Do folks tend to be amused by tinted eggs from EEs? Is the taste any different than that of a brown or white egg?
Our girls are just chicks...so we are still a ways out from all this
Additionally, once we collect eggs, how long is it safe to keep them. Do you recommend immediate refridgeration or not? Any egg advice would be helpful.

 

[cackydoodledoo]

Green or blue eggs don't taste any different than the others. Only thing I have noticed is the shell seems to be tougher. I don't about your laws down there. Here I sell them and haven't had any problems with the egg police if we even have them. (Knock on wood) I have seen studies that show that eggs don't need to be refrigerated for a long period of time but I think it's always safe to do it as soon as possible. My hens lay at all different times of the day. I don't collect eggs until the evening and have never had a problem with them sitting all day. Once I collect them then I wash them off and stick in fridge.

 

[92caddy]

A guy here in our town was selling produce and he wanted to sell farm fresh eggs, but the government told him before he could sell eggs he had to be inspected and go thru testing and so forth. I dont know all of the details, but needless to say he is not selling eggs with the produce.

 

[sawmane1]

i have been selling my eggs under the table you might say. i just dont brodcast by puting sighns up, and yes they shure do love the green or blue eggs.

 

[eastercreek]

I guess a good place to start would be to ask the folks at the downtown farmer's market if they have had any inspection process? They are right out in the open selling to a larger public...so I would think inspectors would have fun with them

 

[cackydoodledoo]

I guess I should have added that I don't advertise. I only sell to certain people. I try not to make it public. I know other people that have put out signs and you get a gazillion people wanting eggs and when they all molt at the same time or the weather turns nasty and they just plain don't want to lay then you can't keep up with the demand.

 

[Mak]

I don't advertise, either. Hubby has a few people at work who will buy our extras.
I don't wash the eggs but I do refrigerate them. Well, if they have feathers stuck to them or are really dirty, I wipe them a bit. But washing takes off the bloom which helps protect the eggs from anything bad getting inside. I just tell people to wash them before they use them.

 

[Buugette]

I don't "sell" eggs. I do, however, bring a dozen or so into the office a couple times a week and leave them on my desk. At some point during the day, they disappear and are replaced with a "donation" to my girls' feed fund.

D

 

[eastercreek]

We were however, a food service establishment that prepared foods, etc. I wonder if there is a difference? As a restaurant we had a sanitation grade and had to attend restaurant safety courses, etc. I wonder if there are even enough state employees to monitor home grown and sold eggs? I do think, though...that as an inspector...he was making sure we did NOT got our eggs from local "yard egg" chicken hobbyists and that if we did use them that they were purchased from certified establishments.

We are not in an area with a lot of gourmet restaurants, etc....but I would think down around New Orleans and around larger metro areas....chefs would be drawn to small home-grown egg suppliers just like they are to small cheese producers and small organic veggie suppliers. Does anyone know of a certification that is available to promote your eggs to these type establishments...or is it even necessary? Just curious.

 

[Captain Carrot]

you won't be going into the egg production business so it's a different matter, I'm not sure of the laws in your state but over here in Austria I'm allowed to sell surplus eggs to the public at my gate, or from door to door. I am not allowed to sell to restaurants or bakery's. Eggs should keep up to about four weeks after laying, but as I sell fresh eggs collected that day or the day before, and to be on the safe side, I tell my customers to use the eggs within three weeks of purchase.

I assume that if you where to see to the restaurants, you'll need to apply for some kind of permit. The same if you where to sell honey to the public, you're eggs would be tested on a regular basis to ensure that they are safe to eat.

unless you have loads of chickens it's probably not worth getting permits etc as you'll only have a few extra eggs a week. I'd keep quite and sell to friends, family and co-workers. A box of fresh eggs makes a nice gift or bartering item.