Sustainability : On eggs and happy hens

Do you know how the eggs you buy in the supermarket get to you? We won't go back to the chicken and the egg but we'll start with the chicken. She starts laying at about 5 months of age. So, she is crammed into a cage about the size of a filing cabinet drawer with 8-10 OTHER HENS. For comparison, pretend that you are living in an average size elevator with 10 other people. Seriously. Horrible. The hens are afforded food and water but in most instances NO natural light. They are fed antibiotics in their feed due to the large number of pathogens in these poorly ventilated facilities. They spend the next 7-10 months in these horrible conditions until the hen is no longer producing an egg each day and then she is transported, in an entirely inhumane manner, to be slaughtered and not surprisingly in an entirely inhumane manner. You'll find that I will repeat myself a lot when it comes to these matters. Please look at this page on wikipedia for more information on the battery cage operation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battery_cage

Now, the eggs are washed and cleaned of the natural protective coating put on the egg by the hen when she lays it to prevent bacteria from entering it, sorted packaged, and sent to your supermarket. This process can take 2 WEEKS OR MORE. So much for "fresh eggs" on the shelf. But, I digress.

My chicks start out in a nice spacious brooder here on the farm.

At about 3 months of age, they are let out in the yard and live there ALL OF THEIR LIVES. I can't lie, sometimes that life isn't as long as it could be due to some pesky predators like foxes, coyotes, and owls. But we try to keep them safe. Most hens will produce eggs for many years, just not as efficiently as a younger hen. A hen can live from 8-10 years.

I pick up my eggs twice daily

I wash my eggs just prior to using them, only if they are dirty.
In this photo, the egg in the middle is a grade AA EXTRA Large egg from Sam's Club. The white one on the right was laid by a White Leghorn and the brown one on the right was laid by a Rhode Island Red. Unfortunately, I couldn't capture in the photo the "sheen" that is on the eggs laid by my hens vs. the "matte" appearance of the supermarket egg.

On average, it costs about $7/month to maintain 10 hens. We eat about 18 eggs a week (yes, I know that is excessive for 3 people, but I bake alot too) so if we were buying them at the supermarket we might be spending approximately $6.00, assuming eggs are $.99 per dozen.

So why would we have our own flock for eggs? After all, we are paying MORE to maintain them AND we have to care for them twice per day every day in all sorts of weather.

-Hens are cute. They are great for kids to feed and care for, as their care is uncomplicated.
-Our hens are happy. I get satisfaction knowing that our girls are happy, healthy, have companionship, room to roam, scratch, sunshine, and fresh air.
-The eggs are better quality. They are tastier and larger than supermarket eggs.
-Hens are excellent garbage disposals. They will eat all types of vegetarian food scraps like bread, pasta, and of course fruits and vegetables. Just put a "trash bowl" on your counter and take it to them each morning.

Should you by farm fresh eggs from your neighbor or co-worker that might have them available for $2.50 or more a dozen when you could be buying them at the store for $.99? Of course! No one is going to get rich selling eggs, so you can assume that most folks are doing it because they enjoy tending to a happy flock and selling eggs to happy customers. The eggs will be of better quality and last longer in your fridge (several months!) than supermarket eggs. And best of all you will be supporting sustainable operations instead of battery operations that are unhealthy and abusive for the chickens. It is the least you can do for the hen that is providing your breakfast.