In my mind there is nothing like farm fresh eggs from chickens who are pastured and allowed to roam and eat grass and bugs. They have deep orange colored yolks and they are out of this world tasty. Once you try them you won’t ever want to buy conventional store bought eggs again. Living in Ohio I am rather lucky that I have dozens and dozens of options for farm fresh pasture eggs all year long. They might cost anywhere from $5.00 to $8.00 a dozen but I happily pay that. They are just THAT good and they are THAT good for you.
As the infographic below demonstrates though, there are other issues to be considered. I eat meat and eggs and I do not believe that it is ethically wrong to do so. Yet I also believe that that food animals should be given the best lives and healthiest food possible. Animals raised in factory farms are often kept in unsanitary, unhealthy conditions and they are given foods that they were never meant to eat. They become sick and diseased as a result and their short lives are filled with pain and discomfort. My choices either support that or they support the opposite…animals raised free and healthy. I know which I choose, how about you?
Photo from the WSPA.
Actually, ‘cage free’ is not as glamorous as this might imply. Cage free is NOT the same as FREE RANGE. Cage free chickens are kept in large warehouse like structures that have little or no natural light and are often very unsanitary and the chickens suffer from disease and injury. Granted they do have the ability to walk around, but they are so over crowded that mobility is limited. If you want eggs from chickens that are exposed to the outdoors, get to scratch the ground for insects and seeds, and generally are given a kind and healthy lifestyle then you need to purchase Organic Free Range eggs.