Why I Take Collagen, Probiotics, and Vitamin C

When you buy eggs at the grocery store, you see a lot of buzzwords: cage-free, organic, free-range, pasture-raised, non-gmo, certified humane; there’s way too many choices. The truth is that a lot of these words are nothing more than marketing lingo - a lot of you are overpaying for eggs that actually aren’t that good.

In this article, we’ll walk through what all the terms mean, and I’ll give you some tips on which eggs to buy and which ones to avoid.

“Basic” Eggs:

First off, let’s start with the most basic kind of eggs. Like 90% of the eggs sold in this country, these eggs come from caged hens. They eat feed made from GMO soy and corn. They have less than one square foot of space to move around in, and they never go outside. The conditions are inhumane.

I would always stay away from these eggs, because the taste, texture and nutrition are just low quality.

Cage-Free:

Next up are the Cage-Free eggs. This is where things get tricky. Labels like cage-free don’t technically mean anything, they’re just warm and fuzzy marketing terms. Hens kept in cage-free pens still only get one square foot of space to move around in. They still don’t ever go outside, and they still eat a diet filled with GMO soy and corn.

In nature, chickens don’t eat grain - they eat things like bugs, worms and grass. But commercial farms want to pump out as many eggs as possible as cheaply as possible, so they feed chickens with these substandard GMO ingredients.

“I would always stay away from these eggs, because the taste, texture and nutrition are just low quality.”

Free-Range:

Free-range is another warm and fuzzy marketing term. They put cute little pictures of these hens on the package, but the words free-range don’t mean anything to the chickens. Once again, these hens never go outside. They have access to the outside through a little door, but they never actually go there because chickens like to stay in groups. The farmers never encourage them to go outside, so they don’t.

These eggs are not much better than the basic ones.

Pasture-Raised:

This kind of egg actually IS different than all the rest: Pasture-raised chickens have 108 square feet of space to themselves. They’re outside from early morning to late night. They’re foraging for the kind of foods they naturally eat, and getting lots of vitamin E and sunlight.

When you crack open one of these eggs and compare it to one of the regular eggs you’ll see the difference right away. These eggs have a brighter, more vibrant yolk. The shell is sturdy and rigid instead of soft and brittle. Put simply, these eggs are much better eggs, both in taste and nutritional value.

Pasture-raised eggs are the best option available, and I recommend that you look for pasture-raised on your next trip to the store.

For more help finding specific egg brands in your area, the Cornucopia Institute has compiled an organic egg scorecard with 28 different factors. Check out the link to find the best egg options available near you!

https://www.cornucopia.org/scorecard/eggs/