Questions, Comments, Concerns
Copyright © 2009. L.H. Gray & Son Limited/Gray Ridge Egg Farms
Blood or "meat" spots are occasionally found on an egg yolk. These tiny spots are not harmful and are caused by the rupture of a blood vessel during the formation of the egg. Candling methods reveal most blood spots and those eggs are removed, but even with electronic spotters it is impossible to catch all of them. If desired, the spot can be removed with the tip of a clean knife prior to cooking.
Double Yolk eggs are generally laid most often during the early weeks of a hen's laying cycle when she is producing Pee Wee and Small eggs.
In fact, the number of double yolk eggs being laid by the young hen is highest during these early weeks.
The production of a double yolk egg is quite natural as the young hen sometimes simultaneously releases two yolks, instead of one to be encased in the shell. The result is a much larger egg than usual, during this early laying period, and it is usually graded as a Jumbo egg.
The feed for laying hens is strictly regulated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) which has dictated minimum levels of vitamins and minerals for optimum bird health.
Laying hens are typically fed a cereal grain based diet including, corn, wheat, rye, barley, flax (in Omega 3 eggs) along with protein sources such as soybean and canola meals and special amino acids.
However, expert veterinarians and animal nutritionists have determined that the cereal and vegetable grains that are economically available to the animal feed industry will not supply adequate levels of all essential nutrients, and therefore; supplementation of the hen's diet with a vitamin and trace mineral premix is required. This supplement is much like a person taking a multi-vitamin each day to ensure they meet their daily requirement for the full range of trace minerals and vitamins.
Because the egg is an ideal carrier of nutrients like vitamins and healthy fats, enhanced levels of these nutrients (such as Vitamin E, Omega-3) can be achieved by increasing the levels of these nutrients in the hen's feed. The hen will take what she needs for her own maintenance and then deposit the higher nutrient levels in the egg; thereby passing along the benefits of the "enhanced" diet she is fed to the consumer of her eggs.
These eggs are regularly tested by the CFIA and Health Canada to ensure the levels claimed on packaging are accurate.
Eggs are actually sized by weight, not by the visual appearance or the diameter. And, while the eggs in a carton seem to be the same 'size' their weight will be within a similar range.
The following minimum weights are used to classify eggs into different sizes:
Peewee eggs - less than 42 g
Small eggs - at least 42 g
Medium eggs - at least 49 g
Large eggs - at least 56 g
Extra large eggs - at least 63 g
Jumbo eggs - 70 g or more