Organic egg production?

Question

how are eggs produced organically?

Answer 1

Organic egg production is the production of eggs through organic means. In this process, the poultry are fed organic feed. The poultry must have access to the outdoors and are in a cage-free environment. Organic egg producers cannot use antibiotics except during an infectious outbreak. Only natural molting can occur within the flock; forced molting is not allowed.

Answer 2

I think this just means that the eggs come from chickens that are not injected with growth hormones or treated badly.

Answer 3

If you are talking about organic eggs in the U.S.A. it really only means the hens were fed organic feed, and not stuffed full of steroids, antibiotics, and growth hormones.  

People in the U.S.A. get "organic", and "free range" confused all the time.

Free range means the laying hens have access to outside pasture type areas.  Free range chicken meat means NOTHING.  

Free range does NOT mean the chickens were fed organic foods.

Organic laying hens in the U.S. can still be raised in confinment, and do not have to have access to free range.

About the "free range" meat chickens.  Producers of "free range" chickens are allowed to raise them exactly the same way as all the other mass produced chickens, until they are 8 weeks old.

Then, magically, a little door is opened on the broiler house, and the "free range" chickens now have access to the outside world.  Except by the time they are 8 weeks old a chickens habbits are fully set.  They will never set foot outside!  The chickens are slaughtered at 10 weeks of age.

Then there are farmers like myself.  When I have hens (non currently, but next spring I will once again) they free range.  I have a shelter for them in the orchard, where they are locked up at night to keep them safe from raccoons, coyotes, ect.  During the day they range freely, over the orchard, and where we just had 9 thousand trees planted.

My chickens get 95-100% of their diet with the fruit, bugs, seeds, ect they find all by themselves.  Yet the cupfull of grain I toss them at night, to make sure they come back to their roost means my hens are not organic, because I will not buy organic feeds.

If you want honestly healthy eggs (as in the fats in the eggs are actually GOOD for you, not bad for you) buy your eggs from a small farmer who keeps a small flock, and is able to allow them to free range for some of their diet.  The yokes will be nearly orange in color, and the eggs will be delicious!

Free range, and organic can be confusing, huh?  By the way, in the U.K. organically raised chicken eggs also mean the hens have to have access to some free range, but not in the U.S.

~Garnet

Permaculture homesteading/farming over 20 years

Answer 4

Eggs are produced organically when the chickens laying the eggs are never given drugs or horumones of any kind.

The chickens are given a stricked diet of grains that are not sprayed with chemicals.