Cage Free Vs. Pasture Raised Eggs
Your standard inexpensive egg that’s labeled as “cage free” isn’t actually all that great. What that really means is the chickens are packed into crowded indoor spaces without access to the outdoors or their naturally intended diet (grass, veggies and bugs!!) and instead they’re fed grains! Next time you see “vegetarian fed” on your egg carton- please know that this really means that they were fed a nutrient poor and unnatural diet and kept in subpar living conditions.
Nutrient poor diets make for nutrient poor eggs!! They may be cheaper but you certainly get what you pay for. Pasture raised eggs are worth the extra few dollars. First of all- you will notice a HUGE difference in the color of the yolks. Conventionally raised chickens produce sad, pale yellow egg yolks and pasture raised eggs produce deep orange yolks. These orange yolks are PACKED full of fat soluble vitamins!! Pasture raised chickens get to enjoy open pasture, eating their natural diet- all while enriching our (commonly nutrient depleted) topsoil. Regenerative agriculture can literally save our precious topsoil, allow for happier lives for animals AND produce more nutritious food!
If you don’t have access to pasture raised eggs locally- @vitalfarms or @happyeggcousa are sold in most grocery stores!