How Much Do Eggs Cost?

Dani and Audrey

When my niece (Dani) came to stay with us this spring, she asked us about our eggs that we sell. She was shocked that my $5 per dozen eggs would cost her more than the eggs that she sees in the grocery stores. I briefly described the living conditions of these pathetic laying hens and the poor nutritional quality of their eggs. So, what makes our eggs better than those cheap grocery store or large chain health food store eggs?

---

First, we mix our own grains as a supplement, rather than a primary source for their feed. We don't feed our chickens soy or corn because both grains are frequently genetically modified and they aren't necessary in a pasture model that supplies a major source of protein from the bugs that they get from the pastures. Further, we add probiotics and increase the mineral content of these grains by fermenting them. Studies show that the nutritional content increases significantly (including the protein) when fermented. ​

---

Second, our hens are enclosed in portable ground cages to protect the birds from predators at night, but allowed to graze in large electric fence enclosures throughout the day. The ground cages are moved six days a week and the paddocks are moved several times a month as needed, depending upon the number of birds and the availability of grasses and bugs. In these enclosures, the birds are free to run and chase bugs, frogs, lizards, small snakes, as well as to gobble up tender grasses and legumes.

As an aside, the other day, while out moving 400' of electric fence for a new enclosure, I heard an odd sound. I traced the sound until I spied a hen carrying a large frog. She ran to a private spot in the pasture so that the other hens wouldn't be able to take away her treasure before she could gobble it up. I've also seen them eat mice, small field rats, small snakes and lizards, and grasshoppers, spiders and caterpillars. Note that the enclosure is large enough that the birds can find privacy as well as forage together as a flock.

---

Third, our hens live totally different lives than factory-farmed hens. Our birds are never de-beaked because we give them plenty of space so that they don't deform each other through pecking. Our hens live under the protection of roosters, which helps them stay safe from predators and provides them a more natural flock. Unlike "cage-free" factory-farmed birds, our birds aren't crammed together in hen houses with little or no room to move around. Unlike "free-range" factory-farmed birds, our birds aren't housed in a large hen house with one tiny door to outside that the hens rarely use.

Fourth, our hens are not fed antibiotics nor hormones since we don't keep them in cramped, unhealthy quarters and we don't want to push them to grow faster or to lay more eggs than they would in a natural setting. Instead, we feed them fermented feed and give them access to a natural setting that allows them to forage for their needed nutrition beyond the supplements that we give them.

For more information to help you make the best choice when buying your eggs, check out some of these links:

​Caged vs Free Range vs Pastured Eggs

Maximizing Value with Fermented Feed

Raising Typical Grocery Store Chickens

Are Cage-Free Eggs a Scam?

Paying $7.50 a Dozen For Eggs

​How to Store Fresh Eggs

If you'd like to visit our farm and see how we do things here, contact us. We'd love to schedule some time for you.

​- Trisha
​
​

---