Out of curiosity I decided one day to compare my pasture raised eggs to a cage-free organic egg you by at your typical grocery store. What I saw was truly amazing!! The difference in yolk was like night and day. You can visually see the difference in yolk quality. The pasture raised egg had a deep orange juicy type of yolk while the cage-free organic egg yolk looked light orange and pasty.
Sadly when chickens are housed indoors and deprived of greens, their meat and eggs also become artificially low in omega-3s along with many other nutrients.
The inhumane practices at these types of indoor factory “farms” should be enough to get you to make the switch. This Essay examines the truth behind the myth of “Cage-Free” eggs. The truth is.. “most “cage-free” eggs are produced on industrialized farms, and there is little evidence to suggest “cage-free” production techniques are less harmful to the environment. They are certainly not “good for” animals.”
PASTURED eggs come from small farms where chickens are raised outdoors foraging as they are meant to do. Eggs from PASTURED hens can contain as much as 10 times more omega-3s than eggs from factory hens. According to eatwild.com results showed that pastured eggs contained an amazing: 1/3 less cholesterol than commercial eggs. 1/4 less saturated fat. 2/3 more vitamin A. 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids and 7 times more beta carotene.
Eggs from hens raised outdoors on pasture have from three to six times more vitamin D than eggs from hens raised in confinement. Pastured hens are exposed to direct sunlight, which their bodies convert to vitamin D and then pass on to the eggs. Most of the eggs sold in the supermarket DO NOT meet this criteria. Even though the label says that the eggs are “certified organic” or come from “uncaged” or “free-range” hens or from hens fed an “all-vegetarian” diet, this is NO guarantee that the hens had access to the outdoors or pasture.
Don’t be fooled by the label reading “fed an all vegetarian diet”. Guess what? Chickens are NOT vegetarian. They thrive on wild grasses and bugs!
It has been estimated that only 40 percent of Americans consume an adequate supply of omega-3 fatty acids. Switching to pasture raised meat, eggs, and dairy is one way to restore this vital nutrient to your diet. Switching to pastured raised eggs is the healthiest choice overall not only for you and your family but the environment to!! Lets get back to raising chickens the way God intended!
Pastured raised eggs can be found now at Whole Foods or Better Health stores (READ YOUR LABELS) or through this RESOURCE .
Be Well 🙂
Susie R.