Guide to Quality, Storage, and Consumption of Eggs

By attending various community gatherings, Engineer Mohammed Al-Fraih compiled all the questions related to the marketing, distribution, and consumption of eggs. He answered them in simple terms and presented them to Al-Qabas—boiled, peeled, and ready to digest—so that all consumers might benefit from them, in a question-and-answer format. Why do free-range chicken eggs taste better? And why aren’t they commercially available? - Free-range chickens eat various types of feed and scraps and move around a lot, so their eggs have a distinctive flavor. However, the cost of these eggs is very high, they are prone to disease, and egg production is low. Why does the color of the egg yolk change? - The yolk color can be controlled based on the types of feed provided, particularly yellow corn and clover varieties. Natural colorants extracted from red bell peppers, yellow roses, orange peels, and other sources can also be added. There is no difference in the nutritional value of the eggs based on the yolk color. The intensity of the yolk color is also considered a measure of egg quality. The yolk color is measured using the DSM scale, which consists of 15 numbered slides from 1 to 15 for each color. The best yolk color for eggs is between 9 and 12. However, other factors influence yolk color, such as breed, xanthophyll absorption capacity, fat content, feed quality, and the hen’s age. Why does the air cell in a boiled egg change? - The air cell changes depending on the egg’s age; a fresh egg has no air cell for the first 3 days, and the air cell increases depending on the type and duration of storage. I recommend peeling fresh eggs after boiling them by leaving them in cold water to make peeling easier. Is there a specific breed of chicken that lays eggs with two yolks? Any hen can lay eggs with two, three, or four yolks, as the eggs are formed after they reach the oviduct. After the hen lays her egg, double-yolked eggs are produced when eggs are laid in quick succession. Typically, the percentage of double-yolked eggs during the early or late stages of egg production does not exceed 1% of the total number of eggs. What causes a blood spot or a flesh spot inside the egg? As the egg passes through the oviduct, tiny blood vessels inside the ovary may rupture at times. This is not considered significant; the egg can be consumed normally, and there are no health risks to the consumer. Such eggs are separated during egg inspection and packaging and are used in the food industry. Brown eggs are common in European countries—are they better? There is no difference between eggs with white or brown shells; the color is determined by the hen’s feathers. Hens with brown feathers lay brown eggs, and hens with white feathers lay white eggs. The preference for brown eggs in Europe is the reason why brown eggs are more common than white ones. Why do we sometimes see the shell crack and liquid leak out when boiling eggs? You should not place cold eggs straight from the refrigerator into boiling water. It is best to take the eggs out of the refrigerator before preparing them and boil them in cold water that is brought to a boil. Similarly, when making cakes, it is best to use eggs at room temperature so that they have better strength and consistency than cold eggs. What are the best storage methods? Eggs should be stored from production to consumption at a temperature of no less than 20°C. It is best to buy fresh eggs from refrigerated markets or cooperatives and avoid buying eggs from non-refrigerated shops and markets such as the old Shabira market in Shuwaikh and similar places. At home, store them in their packaging inside the refrigerator, not on the refrigerator door.