Are Brown Eggs Better Than White?

How many people would choose brown shelled eggs before white? Quite a lot actually. There a commonly held belief that brown eggs are “better” for us, are healthier and more nutritious. Egg sellers at Farmers Markets report that customers, if given the choice, invariably choose brown. There is a paradox in that the UK public would choose brown and in the USA they would generally choose white.

Are brown eggs better for you?


The public preference for brown eggs suggests they believe they are. The opinion of most nutritionists suggests otherwise. Nutritionists believe that there is no evidence to suggest that brown eggs are healthier, tastier or more nutritious. One fact that confuses this argument is that most commercially bought eggs are produced by hens in “battery farms” which means the hens are all fed roughly the same high protein diet containing antibiotics and hormones.

Are brown eggs more expensive than brown?

There is no doubt that given the publics preconceptions about egg colour commercial egg producers and supermarkets will often charge more. It is also true that hens that lay brown eggs are usually slightly larger than white egg-producing hens, therefore they require more feed and care; this extra expense is usually passed on to consumers.

Why are eggs different colours?

Shell colour is generally not as a result of diet it is generally believed to be genetic and even more specifically certain breeds of chicken lay white eggs and other breeds lay brown eggs. A rough guide is that white eggs are produced by hens with white feathers and earlobes whilst brown eggs are produced by hens with red feathers and red earlobes.
Examples of breeds that lay brown eggs are the Rhode Island Red, the New Hampshire and the Plymouth Rock: White Leghorns are the most popular breed producing white eggs. The Aracuna breed however lays colored eggs ranging from olive green to turquoise, but that’s another discussion.

About the Author

Steve Hill is a webmaster from Birmingham, he has interests in a number of websites including:
Stuttering information
stuttering
Alternative therapies

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by: FOOD Total views: 15 Word Count: 345 Date: Wed, 5 Mar 2008 Time: 3:52 AM 0 comments