Difference between white and brown eggs?

[RosemaryS-F]

Does anyone know why White are cheaper? My mom says that they come from further away. I love my mom, but I don't always buy her reasons for things. Anyone know why?

[yeahwhat]

My mil claims that brown eggs are more common and cheaper in England.

I think the colour comes from the breed or colour of the hen.

[weliveintheforest]

yeah, it just depends on the breed of hen.

[_betsy_]

I believe I've read here that brown and white eggs are the exact same thing, nutritionally, though some people believe the brown are better quality. I also believe I've read here that any hen will sometimes lay a brown egg, they're sort of just "flukes."

I'm guessing that the lower frequency of brown eggs couple with a demand for them makes them pricier.

[andreac]

Originally Posted by RosemaryS-F

Does anyone know why White are cheaper? My mom says that they come from further away. I love my mom, but I don't always buy her reasons for things. Anyone know why?

Do you or your mom sing "Brown eggs are local eggs and local eggs are Fresh!"? Remember those old commercials, did you grow up in Mass?

From The Straight Dope:

Brown eggs, however, are more expensive because the chickens that lay them eat more than those that lay white eggs." Among the breeds that lay brown eggs are the Rhode Island Red, the New Hampshire and the Plymouth Rock--all larger birds that require more food.

[Fuamami]

Yes, white eggs became popular in the 50s, I believe (back when everything white was good), and then the breeds that lay white eggs were really improved upon, so they're very efficient layers now, and most egg-producers use them.

[lolar2]

White eggs are easier to dye for Easter.

In England, I tried to get white eggs to dye, Easter 2002, and I could not find a local source anywhere. I called a bunch of dairies and everything, finally gave up. All eggs were brown.

[staceychev]

Originally Posted by lolar2

White eggs are easier to dye for Easter.

Did you dye the brown eggs? We dyed brown eggs this past Easter and loved the colors. In fact, my sister and cousin, both of whom were dying eggs with us, were envious that they didn't bring brown eggs for their kids to dye.

[lolar2]

No, it really wouldn't have worked with what I wanted them to look like that year. I might try it some other time, though.

[karne]

OT-but I have a breed of hen right now that lays beautiful chocolate (think a deep brown/red) colored egg! They are beautiful!

[SeekingJoy]

BTW - chicken eggs come in other colors, too. Green, blue, pinkish. Neat stuff.

[meister31]

Ct used to have a ad campaign
"Brown eggs are local eggs and local eggs are fresh"
don't know how true it is

[Logan's Mom]

I grew up on the west coast and we had nothing but white eggs. Then I came to the east coast and all the eggs were brown. The only thing I noticed where that the brown eggs were a bit tougher to crack. Plus it was just hard to get used to using brown eggs.

[Tizzy]

Brown egg laying chickens eat more and aren't as efficient as white laying chickens.
Leghorn's are the popular breed for white eggs, they are smaller, they lay more consistently sized eggs (consumers like everything to be so artificially perfect!) and you can cram more into a laying cage.
Brown hens need more space, more feed, and aren't as refined for production.
Same as dairy cows - Holstein's are the most popular because of their efficiency.

Regardless of how tough the shell is to crack, look at the color of the yolk and the consistency of the whites. That will tell you more about the quality of your eggs.

[pollyanna]

some one beat me to it I was also going to say "Brown eggs are local eggs and local eggs are fresh". also they are tougher to crack so I find that when I'm looking trough the eggs the brown ones have less cracked ones.

Pollyanna

[Llyra]

It's just the breed of hen.

If you want to know about nutritional value, look at the yolk-- a nice dark orangey-colored yolk is richer in essential nutrients than a pale yolk.

I sometimes buy eggs from a neighbor that are smaller than commercial eggs, and blue and green. I've never seen pink ones, though. That's neat that there are pink ones. DD1 would like that!

There are some people who will swear that the brown eggs are more "natural" or healthier. I think this stems from the white flour/brown flour, white rice/brown rice, bleached coffee filter/unbleached coffee filter thing. We've come to believe that white things are more "artificial," because so often they ARE. When I look at commercial eggs in the grocery stores, all the organic brands are brown eggs, and all the conventional brands are white eggs.

It's what the hens are fed and cared for that really makes the difference in how nutritious the egg is.

[Maluhia]

makes me think of http://racisteggs.com/ - a high school project of a friend of mine.

I don't think, other than breed of chicken, the color of the egg shell is a big deal in flavor/quality/etc.

[anomaly13]

I alwya thought the white eggs were just brown eggs that had been bleached. Not sure where I came up with that but it's what I ahve always thought. So good to know that buying white eggs vs. brown eggs is just a difference in breed (and of coures what ever the carton states as to living conditions and feed)

[Poddi]

They're the same really. We had chicken when I was a kid and we had a few different ones. The brown chicken always laid brown eggs, the white chicken seem to lay white eggs. Our spotted chicken laid white eggs, too. The brown eggs are a bit harder to crack open, but those chicken that laid white eggs seem to produce more.

I imagine that's why most eggs are white, because people prefer chicken that are more productive. Since the brown chickens eat the same and lay less that might explain why they're more expensive. It's just my personal experience. Though I think it's totally possible it depends more on the individual chicken rather than the breed. I mean eggs are like periods in human females. The cycle can be anywhere from 21 days to 35 days (in humans). For chicken it can be everyday to every few days. Like women every chicken already has all the eggs they're going to have in a lifetime, they just have different lengths of their cycle and each time one (or two) mature.

Sorry, ranted a bit too much. I'll stop now and won't get to the gross stuff.

[nataliachick7]

So then, in stores, why are all organic eggs ONLY brown and all non organic eggs ONLY white? I always thought the brown meant either organic or free range?