According to Huff Post, what really separates American eggs from eggs in the U.K. is the fact that we wash our eggs in the U.S. before they go to market. NPR goes on to explain that America, along with a handful of other countries, are the only ones to do so.
Did you know that American eggs would be illegal in a British supermarket because they are washed and British eggs would be illegal in a US supermarket because they are unwashed? It is generally best to leave the egg unwashed.
Differences in egg cleanliness standards. In the US eggs must be washed before being sold to ensure they are clean. In the UK they must not be washed, to ensure they are clean. Meaning that US eggs can't be sold in the UK, and vice versa.
European food safety experts took a different tack: They left the cuticle intact, made it illegal for egg producers to wash eggs, discouraged refrigeration (which can cause mildew growth—and bacterial contamination—should the eggs sweat as they come back to room temps), and started a program of vaccinating chickens ...
Careless cleaning would be worse than no cleaning. There is also a thin layer called the cuticle that naturally protects the egg, and the EU egg marketing regulations prohibit cleaning eggs in order to keep the cuticle intact.
Although egg washing is not a requirement in Australia, sale of dirty eggs is prohibited by Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ). Any washing and sanitising process needs to reduce bacterial load on the eggshell, as visibly clean eggs can still be highly contaminated with Salmonella.
But for the Australian brown eggs, verses the American white eggs, it just comes down to genetics! In Australia, commercial farms normally use Hy-Line Brown, ISA Brown and Hi-Sex Brown breeds. These breeds also have brown feathers. America mostly uses Leghorn chickens.
Food Standards Australia New Zealand's Response
The statement continues to say that refrigerating whole eggs is not required because: The Salmonella bacteria which can contaminate an egg while it's inside the bird isn't present in Australian eggs.
Egg yolks vary in colour from dark orange to almost white and this variation is almost entirely due to the pigments in the chicken's food. A diet rich in pigments will produce eggs with darker yolks.
The issues have been put down to a number of reasons, including rising feed costs, chicken disease outbreaks overseas, weather issues and the belief that supermarkets are phasing out caged eggs too soon.
As you suspected, the reason Americans eggs tend to have bright yellow yolks has nothing to do with "hormones" but rather with what we feed our hens. Beyer says egg yolk color is almost entirely influenced by the birds' diet. So if you're feeding birds yellow corn, "it gets in the egg," he explains.
Myth 3 – White eggs are white because they're bleached:
Instead, they are cleaned with warm water and mild detergent before being thoroughly dried . We don't wash eggs in the UK.
In Europe, farms vaccinate chickens against salmonella. That means the cuticle is still intact when eggs are sold. Refrigerating eggs with the cuticle intact could actually cause mildew to grow. Which could cause… you guessed it salmonella contamination.
White eggs in the United States are not bleached, contrary to popular internet belief. The color, instead, depends on the kind of chicken that is laying the egg, and it usually corresponds with the color of the chicken's earlobe.
In the United Kingdom, for example, producers instead vaccinate laying hens to prevent the transmission of salmonella. They then rely on a thin, naturally occurring coating called the cuticle, to prevent any contamination from the outside of the shell penetrating to the egg.
Eggs and salmonella
The British Lion mark on eggs means that they have been laid by hens vaccinated against salmonella and they have been produced to the highest standards of food safety. Find out more about the story of the British Lion scheme.
IT appears Australian eggs are not all they're cracked up to be. If you think a bright yellow or orange egg yolk is a sign of a healthy well-cared for chicken think again. Most eggs sold in Australia now have their yolks artificially brightened by manufactured additive food dyes placed into the chook's feed pellets.
Why do egg yolks in Italy have such a rich orange color? Egg yolk color is determined by a chicken's diet. Chickens that are fed carotene-rich foods have golden orange yolks. It has nothing to do with the chicken breed.
Salmonella is the principal microorganism of human health concern associated with eggs and egg products. While the frequency of Salmonella-contaminated eggs in Australia is very low, there is a potential risk of illness from consumption of raw or lightly-cooked eggs, or consumption of uncooked foods containing raw egg.
We aren't the only country who washes our eggs. Japan, Australia, and some Scandinavian countries also wash their eggs.
The case for refrigeration, however, is bolstered by the fact that the shelf life of refrigerated eggs is around 45 days, whereas unrefrigerated eggs are good for only about 21 days.
The washing process removes contaminants, but it also removes the natural coating of the egg, leaving the shell porous. On U.S. commercial egg farms, it is required that eggs are thoroughly washed and immediately refrigerated before they leave the farm and during transportation to the grocery store.
There are three breeds that lay blue eggs: Ameraucanas, Araucanas and Cream Legbars. The blue color is created by oocyanin, which is applied early in the laying process. The blue pigment goes right through the shell, unlike the brown pigment. So blue eggs are blue inside and out.
The main egg colour available in Australia is brown, although a small number of farms also sell white eggs. While many people assume brown eggs are more natural and therefore healthier, that's not the case. Brown hens lay brown eggs, white hens lay white eggs, and they both have the same nutritional profile.