Yolk question

[brendaolson]

I always thought that farm fresh eggs had a dark yolk, almost orange. Now that I have my own farm fresh eggs every day, I'm noticing that none of them are that dark. Is it a breed thing? What makes some yolks darker than others?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It's a food thing. The yellow/orange comes from carotenoids in the food that chickens don't assimilate and end up coloring the yolk.
What makes store egg yolks yellow is the yellow corn that is the main ingredient of their food.
Farm eggs that have dark yolks are foraging and eating greens that have carotene in them.
Even if you free range, in North Idaho I doubt there is much in the line of green forage yet. Give them time. Or you can add pumpkin, squash, paprika and other foods high in carotenoids.
In Africa, the main ingredient is white corn which doesn't have carotenoids and their yolks are off white.

 

[brendaolson]

Awesome. Should I cook them or feed them raw?