Wilcox Farm egg yolks - how do they do it?

[mermaid_of_the_farm]

Good morning! Check out these Wilcox Farm egg yolks next to my own free range EE eggs. How do they do it?? How do you get egg yolks like these as a large scale egg producer?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

They use a feed with an additive like marigolds to color the yolk.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/marigolds-and-your-chickens.77811/

 

[kattabelly]

Feed additives.

 

[mermaid_of_the_farm]

They use a feed with an additive like marigolds to color the yolk.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/marigolds-and-your-chickens.77811/

I've heard about marigolds but I guess what has me scratching my head is how they mass produce their eggs to be sold at stores like Costco for 6 bucks per 2 dozen eggs and still do things like additives! Anyway, thanks for the link! It would be a fun project to try and darken up my own yolks.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I've heard about marigolds but I guess what has me scratching my head is how they mass produce their eggs to be sold at stores like Costco for 6 bucks per 2 dozen eggs and still do things like additives! Anyway, thanks for the link! It would be a fun project to try and darken up my own yolks.

Would love to see the outcome if you ever do that.

 

[kattabelly]

I've heard about marigolds but I guess what has me scratching my head is how they mass produce their eggs to be sold at stores like Costco for 6 bucks per 2 dozen eggs and still do things like additives! Anyway, thanks for the link! It would be a fun project to try and darken up my own yolks.

Commercial feed is already made from a few main ingredients and a load of additives for things like nutrition and palatability. For yolk colour there are products available that are either produced from marigolds or other natural sources, or artificially synthesised. The maximum concentrations allowed for those products are usually in the tens or even single-digit numbers of mg per kilo of complete feed, so only really tiny amounts.

This study was one of the first that came up when I did a search just now. There's a lot of complicated biochemistry stuff but this paragraph lists possible sources of carotenoids (which are what makes the yolks more orange):

Improvement of egg functional properties has driven the exploration of various sources of carotenoids to achieve such nutritional targets. Carotenoids such as lutein, zeaxanthin, lycopene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, canthaxanthin, and astaxanthin have been mostly added to eggs for enrichment and biofortification. Carotenoids used for egg biofortification often exist as either naturally occurring products, biofortified plants, or synthetic carotenoids. Among natural products, carotenoids can be derived from algae such as Chlorella vulgaris, Vischeria helvetica, Trachydiscus minutus, Japonochytrium marinum, and Heamatococcus pluvialis (Ambati et al., 2019; Coudert et al., 2020; Henriquez et al., 2016; Jiru et al., 2021; Nwoba et al., 2020); yeasts (Phaffia rhodozyma, Rhodotorula rubra) (Akiba et al., 2000; Pârvu and Paraschivescu, 2014); bacteria (Paracoccus carotinifaciens) (Honda et al., 2020b); plants, leaves, and flowers (calendula (Calendula officinalis L.), basil (Ocimum basilicum L.), stevia (Stevia rebaudiana), marigold (Tagetes erecta), alfalfa (Medicago sativa), and spinach (Spinacia oleracea)) (Kljak et al., 2021a; Pirgozliev et al., 2022; Sunder et al., 2022; Yıldız et al., 2020); plant by-products (red pepper powder, tomato pomace, carrot derivatives, broccoli meal, grapeseed meal, sea buckthorn meal, chili pepper meal, rosehip meal, and paprika oleoresin) (Alay and Karadas, 2017; Arimboor et al., 2015; Hammershoj et al., 2010; Hu et al., 2011; Konca et al., 2021; Moeini et al., 2013; Reda et al., 2022; Sowbhagya, 2019; Vlaicu et al., 2021); and animal by-products (crab meals and golden snail egg powder) (Anderson et al., 2008; Coral-Hinostroza and Bjerkeng, 2002; Nusantoro et al., 2020). Regarding biofortified plants, commercial and biofortified maize containing a set of carotenoids (Burt et al., 2013; Kljak et al., 2021b; Liu et al., 2012; Moreno et al., 2016) were applied as well. Last are synthetic sources, used in the poultry industry to manipulate the carotenoid content of egg yolk. Except apo-ester exclusively present in synthetic form (EFSA FEEDAP Panel, 2009), other carotenoids are mainly chemically synthesized for commercial reasons and available from different companies. Among them are synthetic zeaxanthin (EFSA FEEDAP Panel, 2009), synthetic canthaxanthin (EFSA FEEDAP Panel, 2014), and synthetic lycopene (An et al., 2019).

 

[mermaid_of_the_farm]

Commercial feed is already made from a few main ingredients and a load of additives for things like nutrition and palatability. For yolk colour there are products available that are either produced from marigolds or other natural sources, or artificially synthesised. The maximum concentrations allowed for those products are usually in the tens or even single-digit numbers of mg per kilo of complete feed, so only really tiny amounts.

This study was one of the first that came up when I did a search just now. There's a lot of complicated biochemistry stuff but this paragraph lists possible sources of carotenoids (which are what makes the yolks more orange):

Super interesting! Wilcox Farms in WA is interesting because they have both organic and non-organic. I think what I bought was not organic but free ranged and hormone free. I don't know what the organic egg yolks look like, so I am wondering if there is an organic way to mass produce eggs with very dark yolks. I will read the study you posted. Thank you!!

 

[kattabelly]

Super interesting! Wilcox Farms in WA is interesting because they have both organic and non-organic. I think what I bought was not organic but free ranged and hormone free. I don't know what the organic egg yolks look like, so I am wondering if there is an organic way to mass produce eggs with very dark yolks. I will read the study you posted. Thank you!!

The rest of the study is quite heavy-going and not all relevant, unless you're especially interested in biochemistry.

For organic eggs, I think synthetic carotenoids or extracts that have been through certain processes aren't allowed but more minimally processed additives like marigold petal meal are ok so long as the plant they're derived from was certified as organic.

 

[Penpal]

If your chickens free range you should get beautiful egg yolk. Beta carotenoids are in plantain, dandelions, grass, etc. You won't have to supplement.

 

[mermaid_of_the_farm]

The rest of the study is quite heavy-going and not all relevant, unless you're especially interested in biochemistry.

For organic eggs, I think synthetic carotenoids or extracts that have been through certain processes aren't allowed but more minimally processed additives like marigold petal meal are ok so long as the plant they're derived from was certified as organic.

Yeah, makes sense! I will look up where I can get organic marigolds or maybe grow my own! Do you know if calendula has the same effect? I read they are in the same family but I keep getting conflicting Google results when I searched if they also darken yolks.