What price do you charge for eggs?

[ctcasper]

We have 9 week old chicks and we plan on selling their eggs for 2.50 a dozen, 2.25 if they bring back a carton. Does that seem reasonable to everyone?

 

[ninjapoodles]

I firmly believe that people who are seeking out wholesome, fresh food are willing to pay a litle more for it--gosh, ESPECIALLY if you're delivering!

I haven't been able to find organic feed around here (and I certainly can't afford to have it shipped to me), but even if I could, I'd be hesitant to call eggs "organic," since they do free-range, and I can't control everything that goes into them. I don't know what kind of pesticide/herbicide residue might still be in my soil where they range, for that matter (that stuff can last years).

I do know that "organic" chicken or eggs can be technically "organic" but still battery-raised. When I go to buy fresh chicken or eggs from a farmer, I've learned to look for "pasture-raised" as my keyword, since that better fits my philosophy of how these animals should be able to live and eat. "Organic" is no guarantee that hens get to range, so your neighbor may not ever put their hens out on green grass. Heck, thanks to the USDA, even "free range" doesn't mean free range to the government. It's just meaningless verbage on a package, same as "cage free."

 

[wendy]

Quote:
that does not sound bad. i was going to put it in there that we sell ours for $1.75 to the neighor across the street and her sister in law and mother in law if they bring the cartons back. but i thought that some people might think that was bad thing to do on here! lol!! but with feed going up and my gas to go get my feed i may have to go up on them. as much as i hate to it will probably come to pass soon, very soon. every time i go to buy feed it has gone up, geezz! will it end?

wendy

 

[Anne]

I feed my hens organic feed. Round these parts organic eggs are $3.69 at the cheapest grocery store. Feeling that my semi-organic, multicolored eggs from happy, free-range hens are worth more, I charge $4.00/dz.

That's for eating eggs, of course. For hatching eggs I usually get between $60-$100 on ebay.

Just had to throw that in there because I've had people ask me if they can buy eating eggs from me for $4.00/dz and hatch them, instead of buying the $60-$100/dz hatching eggs.

The answer is NO, even though I DO keep some extra roosters in with my laying hens, they are siblings, so the offspring would be inbred. Besides, if a hen is in the laying pen and not the breeding pen, there's a darn good reason for it (i.e., she's not my idea of quality breeding stock)!

 

[Sunny Side Up]

With only 8 hens you'll be getting 4 to 4.5 dozen eggs a week. You'll be wanting to take advantage of having all those tasty fresh eggs for your own family's consumption and probably be eating more eggs then than you are right now. You may only have 1 or 2 dozen a week to sell. Even less if you use fresh eggs for thank-you and hostess gifts the way I do.

My advice is to find a few folks who will fully appreciate the rare quality of fresh backyard eggs and be willing to pay you top dollar for the privilege, $3 - $5 a dozen. Don't waste your time with the cheapskates who want to pay lower than the store price.

I've found 3 basic attitudes towards fresh backyard eggs:

1. They're a high quality product, far superior to even the organic cage free ones in the grocery, and worth the extra cost.

2. They're about the same as store eggs, but should be cheaper because you got them for "free" from your own chickens.

3. They're nasty & disgusting because they came out of your chickens' butts rather than from a good styrofoam carton at the store.

Don't sell your eggs or your chickens' fine reputations short!!!

 

[ninjapoodles]

(semi-hijacking, sorry)

Do those of you who sell your eggs wash them first? If so, do you wash them before storing them prior to sale? Or do you wait until the day they're selling, so they stay fresher and don't have the "bloom" removed?

Or do they keep pretty well even if they've been washed right after having been laid?

Personally, the eggs I use here at home, I was planning on leaving "dirty" until I got ready to use them, to preserve the bloom and keep them fresher. But then, we don't go through eggs very quickly.

Belinda

 

[wendy]

i have read several sources and have three books on chicken and farm animals. i don't use a "wash for eggs" i make sure they are clean and free of any dirt, straw, hay or whatever and put them away like that. my nesting boxes stay clean and if some how something dirties them up like a cracked egg from a misshap i clean it up and therefore i don't have a problem with dirty eggs. from what i have read you have to have the water a certain temp or you can make bacteria creep into the egg itself. and i don't want to chance that. i have been doing it this way for two years and not any problems or complaints!

wendy

 

[Chickndaddy]

I only charged a dollar a dozen. No wonder I could never keep the orders filled. Even the duck eggs were only a dollar per dozen too.

 

[Stephen in SoKY]

Anne brought up a great point. Even if they're not show quality, I NEVER sell fertile eggs. There's an old geezer & at least 2 other families buying eggs, hatching them, and selling chicks for 75 CENTS. Makes it hard on those of us who keep purebred stock, feed well all year, and try to offset costs with chick sales. The aforementioned people pay NO feed bill for hens much less roosters. Don't let them make money of your efforts.

 

[DouglasPeeps]

Quote:
I agree!