What’s the obsession over egg shell color?

[ladybrasa]

I love my calico princess. However, I have to remember she may not last too long

Sorry this is a bit far removed comment in the thread (from page 3). I think the Calico Princess, Sapphire Gem, and Sapphire Splash are particular hybrids from Dominant CZ company. From the little bit I can google-translate or bits of articles here and there, I think they breed for hardiness and longevity, in addition to the more typical high production goal.

Here’s some google article results:
https://freerangeph.com/what-is-dominant-cz-chicken/

https://gulfagriculture.com/dominant-cz-classic-layers-and-dual-purpose-poultry-for-global-markets/

Point being, you little princess might last a bit long than expected

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Sorry this is a bit far removed comment in the thread (from page 3). I think the Calico Princess, Sapphire Gem, and Sapphire Splash are particular hybrids from Dominant CZ company. From the little bit I can google-translate or bits of articles here and there, I think they breed for hardiness and longevity, in addition to the more typical high production goal.

Here’s some google article results:
https://freerangeph.com/what-is-dominant-cz-chicken/

https://gulfagriculture.com/dominant-cz-classic-layers-and-dual-purpose-poultry-for-global-markets/

Point being, you little princess might last a bit long than expected

That's the hope. She throws meat spots in every egg though, which I've been told is a sign that she might have something else going on though

 

[ladybrasa]

That's the hope. She throws meat spots in every egg though, which I've been told is a sign that she might have something else going on though

Crossing fingers it’s just a non-lethal quirk! Btw, is she very colorful? If my local TSC has a batch this spring, I might get one ...

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Crossing fingers it’s just a non-lethal quirk! Btw, is she very colorful? If my local TSC has a batch this spring, I might get one ...

She's nit. She's an orange with black leakage. But others I've seen look like the ones on the website

 

[debra and shenderra]

...don’t they all taste the same?

growing up...i am 41...we always had brown eggs and that was “weird” to my friends. they would question eating an egg that had a brown shell...now it’s common place in the grocery store as if it’s better than a white egg.

What’s the obsession over egg shell color?

really it all boils down to what you feed your chickens and how golden orange the yolk is (my opinion). The richer the yolk color the better the nutrition the better the egg tasted.

 

[Diana 57b]

White eggs are easier to candle and remove ones with meat spots or internal defects. It is likely why the grocery stores have mainly white eggs.

As to store eggs all tasting like store eggs, I do not find that to be true.

We eat with our eyes first.
The super cheap eggs are pale and watery. That is unappealing to those who have farm fresh eggs.
I personally have difficulties eating them. Not from the looks but from a physical reaction. I get intense abdominal pain from most store eggs.
I went a decade after moving back into town not eating a single egg. As soon as chickens were made legal here I was on it!
This year my hens are taking a full break. I had to buy eggs. The only ones in the stores here before Thanksgiving were the cheaper eggs. I bought them, made deviled eggs, ate ONE and spent 4 days in pain.
There definitely are differences between eggs of different brands, "free range" vs cage kept.

Going forward I will make certain I have a couple young birds going into every winter.

As to color preferences many people just like all the variety of colors readily available now.

Edited to add: I DID find one brand of store egg I can eat without a reaction. Not cheap at all but certainly superior to other in store eggs.

Glad to know I am not the only one that gets sick from store bought eggs!

 

[Diana 57b]

...don’t they all taste the same?

growing up...i am 41...we always had brown eggs and that was “weird” to my friends. they would question eating an egg that had a brown shell...now it’s common place in the grocery store as if it’s better than a white egg.

What’s the obsession over egg shell color?

Seems chickens that prefer a wide range of diet also are the breeds with more interesting colored egg shells.
Mmy body does better on eggs from chickens with well balanced free range diets. I recently started feeding them multi grain bread and diced meats, this has made the eggs more useful for my diet. At the point the chickens that lay the pretty eggs have taught the others to enjoy the new diet.

 

[Flat Earth]

...don’t they all taste the same?

growing up...i am 41...we always had brown eggs and that was “weird” to my friends. they would question eating an egg that had a brown shell...now it’s common place in the grocery store as if it’s better than a white egg.

What’s the obsession over egg shell color?

I have had all color eggs they all taste the same.

The colors are to impress the ones that don't raise hens?

 

[Primicum Bavaricum]

...don’t they all taste the same?

growing up...i am 41...we always had brown eggs and that was “weird” to my friends. they would question eating an egg that had a brown shell...now it’s common place in the grocery store as if it’s better than a white egg.

What’s the obsession over egg shell color?

Growing up as a child around farmers it was normal for me to see white or brown eggs. I never understood this odd questioning or even the price difference in some stores when it comes to brown eggs.

 

[Carson213]

one thing i have realized...and prob most of you have already figured this out...we always have had 20-30 of the same kind of laying hens. so, when they get to be 3-4 years old you can’t exactly tell who slows down first. a huge value of a mixed flock...like if you had 6 different egg shell colored layers is that you could more easily narrow it down and just eliminate a few birds vs swapping out all of them. growing up...at three years we would just swap them all out for a new flock.

i also thought the comment about white shell eggs was interesting and made sense...much easier to see a problem or candle a white egg. in my next flock, if i just get 30 of the same, i am going to get chickens that lay white shelled eggs...makes sense.