My Munchable Soapbox: An Ethical Egg?

Eggs. In theory I don't have a problem with consuming them. Chickens play an active role in soil fertility and pest management on a farm. They eat bugs. Yes, we feed our chickens grain; but given the opportunity, they will scratch around for insects to consume. This also aerates the soil. Plus, they are a ready source of fertilizer for crops! This taps into chickens' natural instincts, and as far as we can tell, yields happy poultry laying eggs. However, 79 billion eggs are sold in the U.S. every year, and the majority of those are produced under industrial conditions by only a handful of companies (horizontal integration). And thus my egg consumption stops.

This video from the Lexicon of Sustainability (which is awesome!), tries to tackle the often misleading terminology associated with eggs purchased in the grocery store. Free Range; Cage-Free; Humane; etc. While I would advocate going to a farmers market, chatting up your local hen-keeper, and finding someone you trust from whom to purchase eggs, I realize that won't work for everyone. So, at least be educated about your options, and read up on what the different labels mean for the treatment of the hens and sustainability of the egg-laying operation.

One last plug - just like pastured beef cattle, chickens that are allowed to "graze" on vegetative matter and insects likely produce eggs with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids and certain vitamins. Now that's some food for thought!

Thirsty Thursday: An Egg-cellent Partnership

While eggs do not figure prominently (or at all) in my diet, they are a staple source of nourishment for many people in the U.S. and worldwide. Now, I am not an advocate for discontinuing the consumption of eggs; however, I do believe that our current methods are unsustainable and treatment of the animals inhumane. Poultry operations (broilers and egg-layers) are responsible for considerable pollution many regions, including the Chesapeake Bay States.

NPR ran a story a couple weeks ago about how two people, on the opposite ends of the egg spectrum, are working together to reach better standards for egg-laying hens. Gene Gregory of the United Egg Producers lobby and Wayne Pacelle of the Humane Society have joined forces to confront congress.

"They agreed to jointly lobby Congress for a law that would allow farmers to keep their chickens in cages, but the chickens would get twice as much space, plus perches and "nest boxes" where they could lay their eggs."

This is really only the tip of the ice-berg.  Yet the average Joe is not going to give up his omelet breakfast. While this uncanny partnership may seem like small potatoes in the larger scheme of things, starting a dialogue between big business and environment/ethics advocates will probably lead to greater strides in overall sustainability and animal welfare than staging boycotts.

A Fowl Affair

It's all over the news these days - the failings of our industrial food system. Peanut products in early 2009, spinach in the spring 2010, and ground beef earlier this month. In fact, the government has an entire website devoted to keeping updated information on food recalls! So, it's not particularly surprising that eggs were next on the roster.

This is not any old recall, though. With headlines covering NPR, the BBC, NY Times, EVERYWHERE, this is something special. Mr. Jack DeCoster is a serial offender in the food atrocities realm. From human rights violations (working/living conditions, etc.) to environmental infractions, this large egg operation is the poster child for bad behavior. It doesn't help much that DeCoster looks the part of a dirty old man, too.

August 18 marked hundreds sick with Salmonella and 380 million eggs recalled. As of today, over 500 million eggs have been recalled, and more reports of illnesses are expected as eggs in circulation are consumed. Thankfully, speedy action is underway...to remedy a problem that started in MAY!

But kids, let me tell you, these eggs get around. According to NPR, "The eggs were distributed around the country and packaged under the names Lucerne, Albertson, Mountain Dairy, Ralph's, Boomsma's, Sunshine, Hillandale, Trafficanda, Farm Fresh, Shoreland, Lund, Dutch Farms and Kemp. It wasn't immediately clear when the eggs were produced and distributed." Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it is really difficult to figure out where the eggs you eat come from, not to mention how the chickens are treated or impact the surrounding environment.

Salmonella is one of those illnesses you grow up hearing about - "don't eat the cookie dough, honey, there are raw eggs in it." Yadda, yadda, yadda; we all did anyway. However, now I would tread lightly and warily. Salmonella enteritidis is a bacterium that, when ingested, can cause individuals to develop a fever, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea. Sounds fun. As far as chickens contracting the bug and spreading it to others and their eggs, well that is largely correlated with the health and sanitary standards of the operation (read: how much are they mucking around in their own feces). Large industry fails in these departments, which could be why a UK study essentially showed that 'happy' chickens don't harbor as much salmonella!

If this all doesn't convince you to pay more attention to where your farm-fresh eggs originate, I don't know what will. Remember, an egg from a local, happy, outdoors, chicken with access to bugs and grass probably costs a pretty penny more than a factory farmed one, but the external costs of polluting the environment, mistreating the animals, and compromising human health are extraordinarily high. There is almost always the option of getting your own chicken or two to ensure some fantastic eggs (Seattle just upped its limit to 8)!

Photos will be back on Monday or Tuesday! :)