Strange question about egg freshness.

[luvmychicknkids]

Had no clue where to put this so I will try here.

Anyway, the eggs I have are starting to get a bit older (we just haven't been eating a lot lately)......some have been sitting for quite awhile in fact. I wasn't worried since I know they last forever, but I did the float check anyway....just to be safe. I have eggs from my chickens and eggs from my mothers chickens. All of mine were fine and passed with flying colors, even the oldest ones. Only one of my mom's eggs passed (out of 6) and I haven't had hers near as long as some of mine. I know she doesn't wash her eggs, none have been refrigerated, they were gathered the day they were laid and brought indoors, never refrigerated. The ONLY difference was that mine are in a bowl and hers in an egg carton (styrofoam). Could this be the reason?

 

[Nemo]

The container the eggs are in is not the ONLY difference...

They were laid by different birds, who might be different breeds and different ages, and live in different coops, and eat different food and different amounts of calcium supplements.

 

[luvmychicknkids]

That is an excellent point. I wondered if those things could make such a difference in the shelf life of the eggs. Perhaps that is the reason. I know her shells don't seem as hard as mine.

 

[silkiechicken]

If they are more porous they can dry out faster.

However, ideally the egg is sterile inside, and even if it really dries out, you could in theory still eat it months later. Just crack it in a separate bowl and add milk to dilute. If it smells or looks off, toss, if looks good it should be fine. I've eaten eggs like 3 months old.

 

[skya328]

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but how longs do eggs keep? What if an egg is fertilized and brought in the day it was laid, does it have the same shelf life as a non-fertilized egg? My girls aren't laying yet, so this isn't an issue for me... (The roos aren't interested in them anyway - not old enough yet I guess!)