I desperately want chickens. Don’t try to talk me out of it, I have already decided! Since starting this blog and my Drifted Way Instagram account, chickens have been an easily attainable and exciting goal for my homesteading journey!
Did you know chickens have an insane presence on the ‘gram? Chickens come in all kinds of colors with varying degrees of fluff and attitude. If you haven’t heard of a ‘silkie’ please click on this link to My Pet Chicken right now and fall in love with these little angels. All of my favorite Instagram chicken families are hatching chicks right now and my heart is simply not strong enough to handle it.
Hubby may come home to eggs in an incubator over the next few days if he is (un)lucky.
More than just being quite cute, farm fresh chicken eggs are so much better for you than the white store bought eggs. Because guess what! Chicken eggs from healthy, active chickens are not actually white. They are beautiful shades of blue, brown, orange, and yellow. Unconventional Acres, a Wisconsin farm I have fallen in love with, shared this picture of their eggs:
See what I mean? Gorgeous! If that doesn’t do it for you, lets move on to talk about the inside of the eggs we eat and cook with.
Growing up, we always bought eggs from the store for around a dollar or two per dozen. they have always been a crisp white, and I never thought anything of the white shells, pale yellow yolk, or where the eggs even came from. Later in life, I have experience fresh farm ‘butt nuggets’ straight outta the chicken, farmers market eggs, and ‘cage-free’ eggs sold in the grocery store. There are multiple ways the eggs we buy are advertised, and some of these product labels get a little tricky. For example, ‘cage free’ eggs and ‘pasture raised’ or ‘free range’ are very different things.
Cage Free Eggs
Cage free chickens are still raised indoors in cramped quarters and fed formulated diets of soy, corn, or whatever else. While these chickens are allowed to roam through cramped spaces, they are often in tough shape from brawls over food and territory or over-stimulated.
Free Range Eggs
Free range is defined differently depending on what country you are purchasing eggs in. In the United States, the US Department of Agriculture has defined free range as ‘allowed to access outside’ for some of their time. As a bright individual, I am sure you can see the multiple loopholes here- chicken produces may have a grass pasture as seen in the right picture below, or they may simply have small access doors to an outdoor gravel yard shown on the left.
The term ‘free range’ sounds very enticing for the consumer, because we picture chickens frolicking along a hillside pecking in the grass and dirt. This is still not true for free range eggs and the chickens are confined more often than not with a manufactured diet and restricted (if any) access to real grass and soil.
Organic Chicken Eggs
Organically raised chicken eggs are required to be fed organic feed sources. I was slightly horrified to read in The Spruce Eats that this means “feed grown without the use of synthetic chemicals, irradiation, sewage sludge, or genetically modified organisms”. Excuse me?! Seems like a pretty damn low expectation if you ask me. Organic chicken eggs also need to be both free range (outdoors occasionally) and cage free. Unlike the previously mentioned egg types, Organically certified egg labels come with an inspection and these facilities are held to more standards than cage free or free range.
Pasture Raised Eggs
The best of the best my friends, and what I encourage in my own yard within the next year! Pasture raised eggs come from chickens who wander and forage in fields and forests during the day and sleep in their nesting box/coop at night. This is chicken heaven, typically found on small scale farms or urban homes raising egg layers, where the chickens get to spend their days filling their tummies with insects, seeds, or organic scraps. Chickens will naturally migrate to their nesting boxes for safety at night but will dedicate their waking hours to eating and producing healthy, natural eggs. These eggs are hard to come by in your general stores, but will be available at your farmers markets or possibly local food stands!
If you are really interested in finding these pasture raised eggs for your family I would recommend a Facebook post searching for a local who raises chickens. Typically, they will have eggs to share and will genuinely appreciate your interest. Selling some of their product will help cover the cost of raising and caring for their beloved chickens! You might be surprised to see how many people raise chickens these days!
For more information on the types of chicken egg production, check out this article here and the one from the Spruce Eats.
Nutritional Benefits of Pasture Raised Chicken Eggs
Morality aside and because we are not all going to be ready to give up animal products based on mistreatment cases alone, I want to quick cover the health differences between a generic caged or caged free (see how deceiving that is?) chicken egg and a pasture raised egg.
I think this article from Morning Chores does a great job summarizing the difference between a healthy egg and a deficient egg. The picture below from their website shows the full, deep color of the pasture raised yolk versus the store bought egg from a confined chicken.
The yolks of the pastured raised eggs produce a deeper, richer flavor. I can personally vouch for this! There is far less processed, manufactured nutrients and more of the natural goodness mother Earth creates herself. Here are two solid examples of evidence for you:
More Vitamins and Healthy Fats in Pasture Raised Eggs
A 2010 Cambridge University Press study on caged chickens versus pasture raised chickens determined the following information–
Compared to eggs of the caged hens, pastured hens’ eggs had twice as much vitamin E and long-chain omega-3 fats, 2.5-fold more total omega-3 fatty acids, and less than half the ratio of omega-6:omega-3 fatty acids (P<0.0001). Vitamin A concentration was 38% higher (P<0.05) in the pastured hens’ eggs than in the caged hens’ eggs, but total vitamin A per egg did not differ.
That is twice as much Vitamin E and Omega-3 fatty acids with 38% more Vitamin A in pasture raised eggs. These vitamins are antioxidants that help our bodies fight infection, inflammation, and boost our skin and brain functions. Omega fatty acids improve our cardiovascular health and anti-inflammatory responses.
Less Cholesterol with more Beta Carotene and Vitamin D in Pasture Raised Eggs
Another study conducted by Mother Earth News and summarized by one of my favorites, the Small Footprint Family really dives into this idea with scientific detail. This study analyzed 14 flocks across the United States and discovered the following benefits to pasture raised eggs:
- 33% less cholesterol
- 7 times more beta carotene (chemically helps in Vitamin A absorption to promote healthy vision, immunity, and skin)
- 3 to 6 times more Vitamin D (helps absorb calcium and phosphorus for healthy bones and immune system)
I firmly believe that if we are going to purchase and consume foods, we should know what we are putting in our bodies. I have started paying around three or four dollars for a dozen eggs- not because it is in the budget but because it is the right thing to do. Until I can raise my own, I want to be a conscious consumer who stands up for my health and encourages demand for products that are better for the humans around me that might not know what they are buying.
I hope this was informative and encourages you to read the next egg carton you pick up. It took a few times in the egg section at the store, but I have found a brand I trust and enjoy. It takes little steps and a few extra dollars to make lasting, healthy changes for our bodies and our planet.
I am sure that a flock of chickens can do wonders for the soul. Stay tuned just in case I end up with a few in our backyard!
<3 Drifted Way
