Article: "What's the Difference Between White Eggs and Brown Eggs?"

[jjthink]

This article seems a bit slim on facts. For example, as far as I've been able to ascertain, great nutrition is more responsible for rich yellow yolks than corn intake......JJ

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/14/white-vs-brown-eggs_n_1342583.html?ncid=webmail3


What's The Difference Between White Eggs And Brown Eggs?

First Posted: 03/14/2012 1:56 pm Updated: 03/15/2012 11:46 am
Follow

We've all noticed the difference in price at the grocery store as we stand scratching our heads, but have you ever stopped to wonder what the difference really is between white and brown eggs? Most of us inevitably choose whichever eggs are on sale, or we just buy the color egg we've always bought. Well, it turns out there actually is a difference between white and brown eggs.
It's all about the chicken
The answer is so simple that you may be surprised. White-feathered chickens with white ear lobes lay white eggs and red-feathered ones with red ear lobes lay brown eggs (this may not apply to all breeds). And besides that, there are certain chickens that even lay speckled eggs and blue eggs. But when you get down to the egg, nutritionally there is no difference -- it's all just in the looks.

Why are brown eggs more expensive?
Many people think that brown eggs must be better than white eggs because they're more expensive, but that's not the case. What makes brown eggs more expensive is as simple as size -- the chickens that lay brown eggs are larger than those that lay white eggs and thus their feed costs more. As a result, the brown eggs are priced higher.
Is there any difference in the shell?
Other than the color, there is no difference between the shell of a white egg and a brown egg. Some people make the assumption that brown egg shells are harder than white, but that's not the case. What's true is that younger chickens lay eggs with harder shells.
Is there any difference in the yolk?
Some people say that brown eggs have a yolk that's more richly colored than white eggs. The type of feed that chickens eat can vary, so the more corn they eat, the yellower the yolks. So it's not necessarily the color of the shell that predicts the intense color of the yolk.
Which eggs do you typically buy? Leave us a comment below.

 

[GardenerGal]

Heehee. Those of us from New England and old enough to remember, will see this thread title and start singing the catchy little jingle that the New England egg producer's association put on the radio:

"Brown eggs are local eggs
and local eggs are fresh"

Back in the olden days, New England poultry farmers raised mainly brown-egg laying breeds, and as there really was no difference between brown and white (or the other tints) in quality, they had to find a marketing hook. In this case, it was true that brown eggs were local eggs... the Midwest was using leghorns and other white-egg layers, and white was the preferred color out thataway. If a New England grocer sold white eggs, the reasoning went, they had to have been trucked in from far away, and hence were not as fresh as the local brown eggs.

It worked, and even though there are lots of white eggs in the supermarkets in New England now, a lot of us old timers still instinctively go for brown eggs. The power of the jingle.

I do have a white leghorn hen though.

 

[duckinnut]

Heehee. Those of us from New England and old enough to remember, will see this thread title and start singing the catchy little jingle that the New England egg producer's association put on the radio:

"Brown eggs are local eggs
and local eggs are fresh"

Back in the olden days, New England poultry farmers raised mainly brown-egg laying breeds, and as there really was no difference between brown and white (or the other tints) in quality, they had to find a marketing hook. In this case, it was true that brown eggs were local eggs... the Midwest was using leghorns and other white-egg layers, and white was the preferred color out thataway. If a New England grocer sold white eggs, the reasoning went, they had to have been trucked in from far away, and hence were not as fresh as the local brown eggs.

It worked, and even though there are lots of white eggs in the supermarkets in New England now, a lot of us old timers still instinctively go for brown eggs. The power of the jingle.

I do have a white leghorn hen though.

I am sad to say that yes I am old enough to remember that.

Agree with 100%. I remember being in a Stop and Shop many moons ago as a youngster with my mother and can remember just a very very small spot for white eggs. Browns had the rule of the roost.(pun). As far as more white eggs which is true, there are probably a couple factors for that. Row house egg farms producing more,better refrigeration and storage factors,bigger tractor trailers with better refers to go the long haul and quite possibly demand. Demand due to people tend to move around for work these days versus 40 years ago not many people did. Brown egg layers for the most part are cold hearty and set up for New England weather in relation to many years ago.

 

[b.hromada]

I guess this answers some people questions?? Now, I know its the greens in their diet, which makes for nice dark yolks! I did enjoy the article too.

 

[GardenerGal]

Great observations about the change in demographics and demand for white eggs in New England, duckinnut.
Yup, New England farmers had mostly Rhode Island Reds and New Hampshire Reds and other cold hardy breeds. And society is so much more mobile now, with family members scattered around the country for jobs, etc., taking their egg preference with them. I'll bet the demand for white eggs at the local Stop & Shop and Market Basket here on the North Shore, came from "immigrants" from white-egg parts of the USA!