Is There a Difference Between Brown and White Eggs?

Published on Tuesday, January 22, 2008, by Michele Foley / Edit Post

Eggshell color does not affect an egg’s nutritional value, quality, flavor, cooking characteristics, or shell thickness, says Emily Cooper, media spokesperson for the American Egg Board.

The difference is that they are more expensive. At CHOW’s local Safeway, one dozen Grade AA, extra-large white eggs from Lucerne sell for $3.19. Their brown counterparts, same size and grade, go for $3.98 per dozen. So why the higher price?

Hens that produce brown eggs are larger than white-egg-producing hens, and require more feed and care; that extra expense is passed on to the consumer. Although it might be cheaper to raise white-egg-producing hens, brown eggs continue to sell well, so they’re still a smart business choice for farmers.

It’s a widespread belief that hens with darker feathers and red earlobes produce brown eggs, while hens with white feathers and white earlobes produce white eggs. Kenneth E. Anderson, professor and poultry extension specialist at North Carolina State University, says it’s not an absolute rule, though he does acknowledge that most hens with white earlobes produce white eggs, and most hens with red earlobes produce brown eggs. Ultimately, eggshell color is a matter of a chicken’s genetics.

Hen breeds are predisposed to produce a certain color egg, says Clint Hickman, an owner of Hickman’s Family Farms. Which breed of hen will lay which color egg is pretty much well known in the industry: White Leghorns are the most popular breed used to lay white eggs, and Rhode Island Reds are most often used for laying brown eggs. (Check out this chicken chart to see what color eggs other hen breeds lay.)

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POST A COMMENT |25 Comments

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  • Well there's no chance of brown egg producing breeds disappearing. It's near to impossible to find a white egg in the UK. Every egg sold in the supermarkets here is brown. It's horrible at Easter if you want to dye eggs. :o(

  • My Grand-daddy raised Rhode Island Reds and Plymouth Rocks, so I grew up eating brown eggs. For that reason alone, I am more than willing to pay extra for brown eggs - and to keep alive breeds which might otherwise disappear. (He also raised Jersey cows - very rich milk but low volume producers, unlike the Holstein "milk factories" - another rarer breed.)

  • Regarding fresh eggs--I have a recipe from the NY Times, I think, where the author needed farm-fresh eggs for his egg drop soup and poached scrambled eggs to be the best tasting. His trick was to crack the eggs into a strainer and let the thin white drip out; he said the remaining white and yolk are much fluffier and akin to fresh eggs. I'm going to experiment this weekend w/ strained and not...+READ

    Regarding fresh eggs--I have a recipe from the NY Times, I think, where the author needed farm-fresh eggs for his egg drop soup and poached scrambled eggs to be the best tasting. His trick was to crack the eggs into a strainer and let the thin white drip out; he said the remaining white and yolk are much fluffier and akin to fresh eggs. I'm going to experiment this weekend w/ strained and not strained.-COLLAPSE

  • I think brown eggs are cuter for some reason, but in my experience they taste the same as the white ones. However, I have noticed that most araucana eggs taste richer and more flavorful than eggs from other breeds, even from the same farm. Maybe it's just the feed?

  • My opinion. The only difference between a white egg and brown is the colour of the shell.

    Does any one really belive that there is enough omega 3 in an egg to make any difference. In fact how do we know that there is any omega 3 in the egg at all. Just because its in the feed?
    I personally believe its just a marketing gimic. If I want omega 3 I'll get it from the health food store.

  • if you love eggs - go to this website.... it will be well worth it if you like a nice giggle....

    http://www.iloveegg.co.uk/

  • Color
    Egg shell and yolk color may vary, but color has nothing to do with egg quality, flavor, nutritive value, cooking characteristics or shell thickness.
    • Shell: The color comes from pigments in the outer layer of the shell and may range in various breeds from white to deep brown. The breed of hen determines the color of the shell. Breeds with white feathers and ear lobes lay white eggs;...+READ

    Color
    Egg shell and yolk color may vary, but color has nothing to do with egg quality, flavor, nutritive value, cooking characteristics or shell thickness.
    • Shell: The color comes from pigments in the outer layer of the shell and may range in various breeds from white to deep brown. The breed of hen determines the color of the shell. Breeds with white feathers and ear lobes lay white eggs; breeds with red feathers and ear lobes lay brown eggs. White eggs are most in demand among American buyers. In some parts of the country, however, particularly in New England, brown shells are preferred. The Rhode Island Red, New Hampshire and Plymouth Rock are breeds that lay brown eggs. Since brown-egg layers are slightly larger birds and require more food, brown eggs are usually more expensive than white.
    • White: Egg albumen in raw eggs is opalescent and does not appear white until it is beaten or cooked. A yellow or greenish cast in raw white may indicate the presence of riboflavin. Cloudiness of the raw white is due to the presence of carbon dioxide which has not had time to escape through the shell and thus indicates a very fresh egg.-COLLAPSE

  • @Food Smith

    The Omega-3 can comes from the special feed the chickens are given. It doesn't have to do with the color of the egg.

  • So what about the Omega 3 factor? I don't see that as a standard feature of the brown egg and I thought it was. I'm such a city girl.

  • Yep! Like everything else, the fresher the food, the better. If you have a co--op or small meat market in your area, they frequently carry fresh local eggs that have spent very little time in transit or aging in the cooler. The flavor is incomparable. Seriously. They cook up faster and fluffier and more flavorful than any egg you can get in the grocery store, organic or not.

    I recently found a...+READ

    Yep! Like everything else, the fresher the food, the better. If you have a co--op or small meat market in your area, they frequently carry fresh local eggs that have spent very little time in transit or aging in the cooler. The flavor is incomparable. Seriously. They cook up faster and fluffier and more flavorful than any egg you can get in the grocery store, organic or not.

    I recently found a resource, and it rocketed me back to era when my mom's friend raised chickens and delivered eggs. I'm now getting them (AND CHEAP!!!) at a small locally-owned meat cutter's. A couple of local kids raise chickens and bring in the eggs to sell for $1.99 a dozen (significantly cheaper than those at our co-op). Worth checking out--don't be thrown by the re-use of egg cartons that most local eggs employ, nor by the fact that sometimes they have dirt and/or feathers on them. That's why they have a shell. Rinse em off, no biggie. Well worth it!-COLLAPSE

  • Schmitt thankyou for your effort my friend

  • @foodperv

    From my mother, but that doesn't help you unless you're near Cincinnati.

    I did a quick google and didn't find much in the way of where to buy them. But good luck!

  • I buy the brown ones to support some of the remaining biodiversity out there.

  • i do think free-range and organic makes a difference. i would buy them white or brown. i just can only find them brown. i actually buy white "regular" eggs to hard boil just so my kids can easily tell the difference.

  • Thinner shells should make no difference... by the time the pesticide is in the egg, it's already come from the chicken. I've been buying the Omega-3 eggs recently, ironically I get the from Whole Foods.

  • I prefer the free range/organic brown eggs simply because the generic white eggs at the grocery store tend to have thinner shells. I was told that this made them more of a health risk for things like salmonella and pesticides.

  • We get these local eggs -- Schultz organic free range eggs from owatonna MN. They're grade A, but the shells are very tough, very hard to crack which makes me think they're well-fed. They are so delicious and so fresh, and they are indeed brown. I think happy chickens make delicous eggs.

  • say schmitt can they be purchased anywhere that you know of

  • Don't forget the Aracauna and Americauna breeds which lay pink eggs and green eggs!

  • i started sing that song as i started to read this story thats pretty sad

  • This is very interesting. Someone urged me to get brown because they are "better" but I've wondered why. I used to buy Greenbriar Farms organic some years ago and they were white.

  • I'm so glad someone else has been infected with the "Brown eggs are local eggs" song.

  • Growing up in Massachusetts (in the 80s/90s), you always heard "Brown eggs are local eggs, and local eggs are fresh!" commercials. It's so stuck in my head that I almost never buy white eggs. Marketing does work...

  • The brown and white eggs cost the same at the supermarket I go to... The free range eggs only ever seem to come in brown though.

  • Growing up in New England, brown eggs were the standard. The only time I saw white eggs was at Easter, when they were sold for dyeing.