What's really in Our Eggs?

New Zealanders eat two and a half million eggs per day which adds up to 920 million each year.

Most eggs (89%) are laid in caged farms. Chickens are kept in tight,  cramped cages that can hold up to 6 hens. The hens don’t exercise and aren't able to do what everyday hens do. In the cages they are held in, there is a little electric wire at the front of the cage that prevents the hens from getting to the eggs when they are laid. The cages are on an angle, so that the eggs can roll onto the conveyer belt. Hens have to grip the cage so they don’t slide to the front and get shocked.

9% of eggs are free range or organic. The hens are able to live in big open spaces allowing them to have their daily exercise to keep them healthy. They have access to grass as well as chicken feed. The hens are kept on fields surrounded by gates to keep them from running away. When they lay their eggs, it is picked and packed by human hand.

Barn raised hens have the space to perch, dust bath and nest. The hens aren't able to run around though as they are all packed into the barn. They are the least common bought eggs at 2%.

Colour agents are put in the chicken feed to brighten the eggs yolk. New Zealand yolk is naturally darker in colour. However, it doesn't have an impact on its nutritional value.

Free range eggs are better to eat but it is very expensive. Caged eggs are cheaper but how they are raised are horrible. The environment that free range farms have is a more better living space.