Small-scale Egg Production

[millbrookfarm]

That's so cool you are moving that many eggs, Pasturedpeeps!

If I could, I would love to ask you a couple of questions about your operation.

1) How do you clean that many eggs?

2) Did you expand your business through word of mouth or some other means?

Anything else you would like to share with others that might be helpful would be awesome as well.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

That's so cool you are moving that many eggs.

If I could, I would love to ask you a couple of questions about your operation.

1) How do you clean that many eggs?

2) Did you expand your business through word of mouth or some other means?

Anything else you would like to share with others that might be helpful would be awesome as well.

I don't sell that many eggs at all. It's just a natural part of the laying/growth cycle. There are times of boon and times of few. To make sure we ourselves don't ever buy eggs there is a number of birds one needs to keep for the times of few.

1) I don't wash or refrigerate eggs and feel it's ignorance on the part of local governments to make laws forcing people to. I believe there are less states requiring washing and refrigeration than those that don't.

2) I find most people in this area don't want to pay a real price. If I charge 2.50 or 3 can't sell all of them yet when I sell eggs to a local store for $2.25 a dozen, they mark it up a lot, and they sell like hotcakes. No hassle dealing with people and works for us. No legwork tryig to find those that want my product and nobody coming random times to my house.

 

[millbrookfarm]

I don't sell that many eggs at all. It's just a natural part of the laying/growth cycle. There are times of boon and times of few. To make sure we ourselves don't ever buy eggs there is a number of birds one needs to keep for the times of few.

1) I don't wash or refrigerate eggs and feel it's ignorance on the part of local governments to make laws forcing people to. I believe there are less states requiring washing and refrigeration than those that don't.

2) I find most people in this area don't want to pay a real price. If I charge 2.50 or 3 can't sell all of them yet when I sell eggs to a local store for $2.25 a dozen, they mark it up a lot, and they sell like hotcakes. No hassle dealing with people and works for us. No legwork tryig to find those that want my product and nobody coming random times to my house.

So, how many eggs do you sell a month Egghead? You said that you don't sell that many. What is the focus you have with your chickens then?

 

[Egghead_Jr]

My focus to to breed to SOP a bird I enjoy the looks and personality of. That's the hobby- enjoying your birds. The bonus is never to purchase eggs again.

What I was saying in first post was to get where you never purchase eggs again you need quite a few layers to cover the times of dearth. That means you have a ton of eggs in boon times. For me selling was simple and headache free to sell to a local store for them to make profit and find the customer.

 

[Pasturedpeeps]

Yes, word-of-mouth is my main marketing approach. But I have found that giving our sample dozens almost always works to generate sales.
As for cleaning eggs. Its only about 5-6 dozen a day to clean so not a lot of labor. I use sandpaper to clean off any dirt or poop. Its simple, effective and I don’t want to wash off the nature antibacterial coating (bloom) that is on the eggs. If the bloom is washed off the eggs don’t last as long.But the real key is to keep them clean in the first place. That can be tough in the fall and winter if you keep your birds on pasture.

 

[aart]

Yes, word-of-mouth is my main marketing approach. But I have found that giving our sample dozens almost always works to generate sales.
As for cleaning eggs. Its only about 5-6 dozen a day to clean so not a lot of labor. I use sandpaper to clean off any dirt or poop. Its simple, effective and I don’t want to wash off the nature antibacterial coating (bloom) that is on the eggs. If the bloom is washed off the eggs don’t last as long.But the real key is to keep them clean in the first place. That can be tough in the fall and winter if you keep your birds on pasture.

Sandpaper will take off the bloom....in the spot that you 'sand'.....and basically grind the 'dirt' into the pores of the egg.

 

[Pasturedpeeps]

Agreed the sandpaper removes the bloom but only in the places sanded. After a number of years of cleaning eggs by sanding I disagree. Sanding is a extremely effective cleaning method. But it does have its limitations.

 

[aart]

Agreed the sandpaper removes the bloom but only in the places sanded. After a number of years of cleaning eggs by sanding I disagree. Sanding is a extremely effective cleaning method. But it does have its limitations.

Do you refrigerate after sanding?

 

[Spartan22]

Sandpaper will take off the bloom....in the spot that you 'sand'.....and basically grind the 'dirt' into the pores of the egg.

2X- might as well spot-wipe it with moist warm towel. Better yet wash it all together with warm water and refrigerate. This is what we do with soiled eggs, Clean ones gets no wash/norefrigeration.

 

[MeepBeep]

Sanding is a extremely effective cleaning method.

I would argue it's mostly a cosmetic cleaning method and not all that effective at removing the bacteria...

I would be interesting to do a bacteria culture test on sanding vs other cleaning methods...

Don't take this as advocating cleaning of eggs, there are pros and cons to both cleaning and not cleaning...

I personally rinse under running warm water no sooner than 24 hours before sale and then refrigerate... All my customers are notified that this is all that is done...

On a side note, the other day I was in the local feed store that sells some locally farmed eggs, and the woman in front of me buying some of those eggs was talking up the fact that some eggs still had poop on them indicating they were not cleaned and still maintained their bloom...