Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

npr.org

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–120 of 158 posts

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#111

Post by dragonwriter »

debacle wrote: post #23
heydenberk wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why do you support banning GMOs? I don't mean to be snarky, but I don't know of any good scientific case for doing so. In my estimation, GMOs are one of the most promising technologies for increasing quality of life around the world.

There are logical reasons for being against GMOs. Many of them have nothing to do with the fact that the product is GMO: * GMOs tend to promote monoculture and pesticide use. * Studies have shown that the same developments that make GMOs more insect resistant can also make them more difficult to digest. * When it comes to animals, GMOs tend to have much poorer quality of life and tend to be completely incapable of su…

> There are logical reasons for being against GMOs.

Maybe.

> Many of them have nothing to do with the fact that the product is GMO:

Then they aren't logical reasons to be against GMOs, though they may (or may not) be logical reasons to be against particular GMOs.

> * GMOs tend to promote monoculture and pesticide use.

GMOs may or may not do this. This really depends on what they are designed for -- GMOs designed to be well adapted to particular growing conditions don't promote monoculture, since you'll prefer different ones for different growing conditions.

> * Studies have shown that the same developments that make GMOs more insect resistant can also make them more difficult to digest.

Insect resistance isn't the only feature GMOs are designed for, and that is -- at most -- a reason to be against GMOs designed for that particular feature in food roles.

> * When it comes to animals, GMOs tend to have much poorer quality of life and tend to be completely incapable of surviving without constant support (chickens who can't stand on their own, cows who can't go more than 48 hours without milking, etc).

Again, that's an argument against the specific features, not against GMOs.

> * GMOs almost never focus on the true value of a food item, but rather the sell value. A food that looks nutritious is more valuable than one that actually is and GMOs make it easier to create that false association (deep red tomatos that taste like wall paper glue, etc).

That's an argument against capitalism, not GMOs.

> It's important to note that all of these things are really a byproduct of industrial agriculture, but many people associate them more directly with GMOs.

That makes them illogical, even if understandable reasons to be against GMOs.

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#112

Post by zedpm »

One of many benefits of living in a semi-rural area (western South Dakota) is easy access to truly high-quality foods like actual farm eggs. I've walked around the two farms I buy eggs from and I've seen the chickens wandering around. They get ordinary feed, of course, but also scavenge insects and other things, resulting in gorgeous orange yolks and tasty eggs. I pay $2 a dozen (as long as I promise to return the egg cartons to be reused), or sometimes just trade some fresh produce for the eggs.

Almost all of my meat (beef, lamb, goat, and pork) is similarly purchased from small producers I personally know; often my family and I butcher the animals ourselves. This approach is a win in terms of quality, cost, humane treatment of animals, and satisfaction.

Having a connection to my food and the people who produce it is, to me, reason enough to prefer living in fly-over country vs. San Francisco. All the fresh air, open land, and lower stress environment doesn't hurt either.

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#113

Post by felipesabino »

Only reading the title I thought it would be a discussing about fake eggs in chine being a hoax [1]

But anyways, this is just more confirmation these jargons in labels mean almost anything useful for the general public. The article reminded me that funny "natural effect" videos [2] and also that the whole GMO labelling issue that still make people argue.

And in the end of the day, all I have seen so far is a lot of fear mongering and no debate wether real useful information should be added to labels, like 'how far and for how long did this food traveled', 'how long was it kept in storage' and so on...

[1] http://sguforums.us/index.php/topic,43295.msg9275536.html#ms...

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AftZshnP8fs

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#114

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

ndespres wrote: post #102

Of course an article on our food system is in all of our interests (Soylent customers, perhaps, excepted) but I'm always happy to see an article like this at the top of hn. I feel that this industry is particularly ripe for innovation, and it's where I'm presently working. Though it turns out, feeding and watering all the animals every day takes up all that time I thought I'd have to design new systems to track egg c…

systems to track egg consumption and greenhouse temperatures with my Arduino

That's funny! I planned on doing exactly the same thing when I started keeping chickens about 6 years ago. I got as far as building an LED lamp to add extra light to keep them laying in winter. Never used it (except to check up on them at night).

I guess if I was doing this commercially it would be worthwhile, but for a hobby flock of a dozen it hardly makes sense.

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#115

Post by mcmancini »

ars wrote: post #106
byoung2 wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've yet to find an egg like that, though I've heard you can get them if you raise backyard chickens. I've seen very firm yolks in the Philippines, where the farm to store time is hours, not days or weeks like in the US. Eggs aren't refrigerated there like they are here, which I found hard to accept, but it turns out that if you wash the eggs on the farm (as is required in the US), you have to refrigerate them. In th…

Actually you don't need to refrigerate them in the US either. They'll keep for a few months out of the fridge. They are kept in the fridge only to keep the yolk firm and hard, it's not necessary to keep them from spoiling.

Your advice seems to contradict the FDA: http://www.fda.gov/Food/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm077342....

What is the basis for your claims?

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#116

Post by pimlottc »

codingdave wrote: post #94
schmichael wrote: post #41

Backyard chicken farmer here! If you have a bit of yard space and time they make wonderful pets. About as difficult to care for as cats and what they lack in cuddles they make up for in hilarious/idiotic behavior. I doubt it saves me any money, but it's fun and provides lots of "organic pasture-raised" eggs and compost.

They are also a great way to reduce your waste. We send all of our kitchen scraps to the chickens, and they give us eggs in return. They also keep the area under our apple tress fairly clear for us, eating all the insects that otherwise would be in our trees, and keeping the mice away. And they get to munch on any fallen apples. Works out well for the chickens and for us.

> And they get to munch on any fallen apples.

Hmm, I wonder if they like lemons...

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#117

Post by No1 »

ashark wrote: post #58
tiglionabbit wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I went to whole foods and bought a bunch of different brands of eggs and cracked them at home to inspect them. I noticed a big difference between the ones that said "pastured" from all of the others. These were usually the orangest and firmest. The yellowest and weakest were the "omega 3 flax fed" ones. Words like "cage free" and "free range" didn't seem to make a difference.

If various articles I've seen on the topic are to be believed, eggs from pastured hens don't just look and taste different—they're far more nutritious than the rest[1]. I forget which nutrient (and I'm not certain it's even one of the ones listed at that link) but IIRC there's one that's very difficult to come by in the recommended quantities unless you 1) eat lots of insects, or 2) eat eggs and/or meat from birds th…

> but if you seek out quality there go convenience

These guys deliver good (pastured) eggs to your doorstep:

https://www.goodeggs.com/

Free delivery, but only in select markets.

> and low prices

I totally agree with you there, but as you noted, our ultra-low food prices are looking more and more like a scam.

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#118

Post by archagon »

sneak wrote: post #100
delbel wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wow that's expensive, I raise chickens for eggs that are 100% organic. My costs are about $.66 a dozen (90% of their feed is free range around my house). That CSA is literally printing money. Talk about perceived value!

That is not what literally means.

False: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/literally

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#119

Post by derekp7 »

Aloisius wrote: post #29
archagon wrote: post #21

The description in "The Omnivore's Dilemma" of egg yolks from idyllically pasture-raised chickens is forever stuck in my memory. "Between stops, Art mentioned that Joel’s eggs usually gave him his foot in the door when trying to land a new account. We stopped in at one such prospect, a newly opened restaurant called the Filling Station. Art introduced himself and presented the chef with a brochure and a dozen eggs. T…

The color of an egg yolk is based on what the chicken ate and has no bearing on how idyllic their lives were. There are plenty of pasture raised chickens without the deep orange color because the plant material around them (you can get nearly white colored yolks from a hen that has literally miles of pasture around them). If there a lot of capsicum peppers around for instance, the yolks will turn almost red. How firm…

If you look on the egg carton, there should be a 3-digit date code telling you when the eggs were laid. That code is the day number of the year (so 032 would be Feb 1, 182 is July 1, etc). I've gotten in the habit of figuring out which day number it currently is, then at least I know how old the eggs are that I'm getting.

Re: Eggs Not Always What They're Cracked Up to Be

#120

Post by shawn-butler »

ars wrote: post #106
byoung2 wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've yet to find an egg like that, though I've heard you can get them if you raise backyard chickens. I've seen very firm yolks in the Philippines, where the farm to store time is hours, not days or weeks like in the US. Eggs aren't refrigerated there like they are here, which I found hard to accept, but it turns out that if you wash the eggs on the farm (as is required in the US), you have to refrigerate them. In th…

Actually you don't need to refrigerate them in the US either. They'll keep for a few months out of the fridge. They are kept in the fridge only to keep the yolk firm and hard, it's not necessary to keep them from spoiling.

Based on some experience utilizing RFID tagging in the vegetable and egg packing industries to meet regulatory and supplier freshness requirements:

US FDA final egg rule requires the holding and transporting of shell eggs at or below 45F ambient temperature beginning 36 hours after time of lay.

At a producer of any volume, eggs are gathered 2x daily, generally by automated machinery; occasionally still gathered by hand. Eggs are gathered as soon as hens lay them because warmer temperatures encourage physical/chemical changes that affect "freshness" adversely.

Justification of refrigeration can be found in the response to public comments on FDA final egg rule (where SE = salmonella) [0]:

The 36-hour limit for unrefrigerated holding is supported by a model, contained in the 1998 joint SE risk assessment (Ref. 21), which was developed to examine the relationship among holding time, holding temperature, and yolk membrane breakdown as an indicator of SE risk. (The yolk membrane separates the nutrient-rich yolk and any SE bacteria that might be present in the albumen; breakdown or loss of the yolk membrane results in rapid growth of SE present in the albumen.) The model showed that, at 70 to 90 °F (i.e., temperatures that might be observed in unrefrigerated egg holding areas in farms or warehouses or in transport vehicles), there was much less breakdown of yolk membrane in eggs held no longer than 36 hours than in eggs held no longer than 72 hours. According to the model, eggs held at 70°F will experience at least a 16-percent breakdown of yolk membrane after 36 hours and a 25-percent breakdown after 72 hours. Eggs held at 80 °F will suffer at least a 22-percent breakdown after 36 hours and a 39-percent breakdown in the yolk membrane at 72 hours. At 90 °F, there is at least a 33-percent breakdown after 36 hours and at least a 62-percent breakdown of the yolk membrane after 72 hours.

[0]: [pdf] http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2009-07-09/pdf/E9-16119.pdf

Post reply on HN