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Why US eggs? From Atlanta to Hong Kong, buyers know about the "egg-ceptional" qualities of U.S. eggs and egg products... Read More... Shell Eggs USDA standards are used throughout the U.S. industry to classify shell eggs into three consumer grades… U.S. Egg Products Direct from Mother Nature, with a touch of modern technology that cracks, separates and packages convenient forms of whole eggs whites and yolks, egg products provide food formulators with important benefits… Egg and Egg Product Safety The 1970 Egg Products Inspection Act requires that all egg products distributed for consumption be pasteurized… Egg Nutrition An Egg a Day is MORE Than Okay… More about Eggs What is double yolk eggs? How are they formed?... About Us Supported by American Egg Board (AEB), this website is targeted to serve as an information portal of U.S. eggs and egg products… Recipes Eggs can incredibly fit into meals of any daypart. Get inspired using our chef-created recipes…

Handling Eggs at Home Proper refrigeration, cooking, and handling should prevent most egg safety problems. Persons can enjoy eggs and dishes containing eggs if these safe handling guidelines are followed. 1. Don't Eat Raw Eggs This includes "health-food" milk shakes with raw eggs, Caesar salad, Hollandaise sauce, and any other foods like homemade mayonnaise, ice cream, or eggnog made from recipes in which the raw egg ingredients are not cooked. 2. Buy Clean Eggs At the store, choose Grade A or AA eggs with clean, uncracked shells. Make sure they've been refrigerated in the store. Any bacteria present in an egg can multiply quickly at room temperature. Don't wash eggs. At the plant, government regulations require that USDA-graded eggs be carefully washed and sanitized using special detergent. Then the eggs are coated with a tasteless, natural mineral oil to protect them. 3. Refrigerate Eggs Take eggs straight home and store them immediately in the refrigerator set at 40ºF or slightly below. Store them in the grocery carton in the coldest part of the refrigerator and not in the door. 4. Use Eggs Within Recommended Times Use raw shell eggs within 3 to 5 weeks. Hard-cooked eggs will keep refrigerated for 1 week. Use leftover yolks and whites within 4 days. If eggs crack on the way home from the store, break them into a clean container, cover it tightly, and keep refrigerated for use within 2 days. 5. Freeze Eggs for Longer Storage Eggs should not be frozen in their shells. To freeze whole eggs, beat yolks and whites together. Egg whites can be frozen by themselves. Use frozen eggs within a year. If eggs freeze accidentally in their shells, keep them frozen until needed. Defrost them in the refrigerator. Discard any with cracked shells. 6. Handle Eggs Safely Wash hands, utensils, equipment, and work areas with warm, soapy water before and after contact with eggs and dishes containing eggs. Don't keep eggs -- including Easter eggs -- out of the refrigerator more than 2 hours. Serve cooked eggs and dishes containing eggs immediately after cooking, or place in shallow containers for quick cooling and refrigerate at once for later use. Use within 3 to 4 days. 7. Cook Eggs Many cooking methods can be used to cook eggs safely including poaching, hard cooking, scrambling, frying, and baking. However, eggs must be cooked thoroughly until yolks are firm. Scrambled eggs should not be runny. Casseroles and other dishes containing eggs should be cooked to 160ºF as measured with a food thermometer. 8. Use Safe Egg Recipes Egg mixtures are safe if they reach 160ºF, so homemade ice cream and eggnog can be made safely from a cooked base. Heat the egg-milk mixture gently. Use a food thermometer to check the temperature or use a metal spoon (the mixture should coat the spoon). If in-shell pasteurized eggs are available, they can be used safely in recipes that won't be cooked. Dry meringue shells are safe. So are divinity candy and 7-minute frosting, made by combining hot sugar syrup with beaten egg whites. Meringue-topped pies should be safe if baked at 350ºF for about 15 minutes. Chiffon pies and fruit whips made with raw, beaten egg whites cannot be guaranteed safe. Substitute whipped cream or whipped topping. To make key lime pie safely, heat the lime (or lemon) juice with the raw egg yolks in a pan on the stove, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 160ºF. Then combine it with the sweetened condensed milk and pour it into a baked pie crust. Cook egg dishes such as quiche and casseroles to 160ºF as measured with a food thermometer.

Buying & Storing Buying Look for eggs with shells that are clean and unbroken. Buy USDA Grade AA or A shell eggs from refrigerated cases. Do not buy eggs having shells that are dirty, cracked or leaking. Do not buy eggs that are being stored at room temperature. Buy eggs before the Expiration (EXP) or the "Sell-By" date. The EXP date, however, is not federally required. Storing Eggs should never remain out of refrigeration for more than one hour. Eggs that are taken from a refrigerated environment and placed in a warm, humid environment will "sweat", or produce condensation on their shells. This is the perfect medium for the growth of bacteria. Store eggs in their carton, large end up, and on an inside shelf of a refrigerator. The carton helps protect the eggs from picking up odors and flavors from the other foods. In addition, the carton helps to prevent moisture loss. Keep eggs refrigerated at or below a temperature of 2°C to 7°C (35°F to 45°F) until they are to be used. Properly handled and stored eggs rarely spoil. USDA requires eggs to be stored at 7°C (45°C) or lower after processing. Fresh, uncooked shell eggs that have been properly refrigerated will maintain their high-quality for a more extended period of time.

Skillet Mixed Berries Pudding Recipe for 4 portions Step i. Mixed Berries Pudding ii. Lemon Meringue Mixed Berries Pudding Ingredients: 80g U.S. Liquid Egg Yolk 15g Butter to grease 250g Fresh Blueberries 90g Raspberries 1tsp. Lemon Zest 85g Cake Flour 55g Bread Flour 100g Caster Sugar 1tsp. Baking Powder 100g Milk 45g Melted butter 120g Caster Sugar 10g Corn Starch 240g Hot Water Method: Toss berries with lemon zest. Pour into prepared pan. Mix together flour, sugar and baking powder. Whisk in milk, egg yolk and melted butter. Pour all mixture over the berries. Mix remaining sugar with corn starch and salt and sprinkle this over the batter. Pour the hot water on the skillet and bake for 30 minutes. Lemon Meringue Ingredients: 180g U.S. Dried Egg Whites (reconstituted) 300g Caster Sugar 6g Cream of Tartar Pinch of Salt 1 tsp. Lemon Zest Method: Meringue Cookies: Combine egg White, cream of tartar, and salt, beat the egg whites at slow speed until the foam throughout, add the sugar, and beat to soft peaks. Assembly Uncover skillet; spread meringue on top. Brown meringue using a kitchen torch, if desired.

Export Packing & Shipping Export Packing Fiber flats or trays hold 30 eggs. Filled flats are packed into cases that hold 360 eggs. The W-5-C used to be the premier export case; however, now the U.S. industry is moving toward 200-lb. test cases for small eggs, and 275-lb. test cases for medium and larger eggs. These cases are fitted with liners and conform to U.S. specifications for egg export shipments. The case top and bottom is sealed with reinforced gum tape. Shipment Eggs are shipped either by refrigerated trucks or aboard ocean vessels, in refrigerated ocean containers. The number of cases that can be shipped in a container or trailer truck is limited due to road weight restrictions in the United States. The carrying temperature in an ocean container is normally set at 3.36°C (38°F).

High Quality Protein for Women’s Health Protein is the only essential nutrient that provides nitrogen, extremely important for building and repairing muscle and organ tissues as well as maintenance of blood, nerves, bones and heart. After mother’s milk, an egg contains the highest quality food protein known. The human intestine is able to absorb ninety seven percent of the egg’s protein in the form of amino acids. In fact, egg protein contributes all the amino acids known to be essential for humans in the amounts needed for normal body function. Egg white has the highest biological value protein of any one food. This means all nitrogen from egg protein can be absorbed and retained by our body. Recent studies of protein metabolism have highlighted the vital importance of protein consumption for women. One study where elderly women were fed diets containing protein from either animal or vegetable sources found less breakdown of body protein in the elderly women consuming protein from animal rather than vegetable sources. In addition, animal protein was also found to increase bone density, while vegetable protein intake decreased it. Another study found elderly women experienced significant loss of normal body function including immune response, muscle function and muscle tissue stores when a low protein diet was consumed. In fact, research into what constitutes adequate protein in older people found that the RDA for protein (0.8 grams/kg body weight) may not be enough to meet the body’s needs of older adults. Given the quality of the protein eggs supply, women would be well advised to consume an egg daily to maintain healthy protein storage at all ages.

Egg-cellent Foods, Egg-cellent Proteins Consumers are looking for healthy alternatives. Can you help? Energy boosting foods are in demand. An egg, nature's answer to the quest for a near-perfect protein, is also your answer to the quest for a highly available, highly functional protein ingredient. Just look at the facts: Eggs contain the most easily digestible, most readily available protein compared to any other type. Eggs are used as the standard for measuring the protein quality of other ingredients. Processed eggs contribute the same high-quality protein as fresh. For more on the story of egg proteins, independent scientific studies and highlights of the egg's amazing functional properties download the pdf titled: egg-cellent Foods egg-cellent Protein. For information about health and nutrition topics, visit the Egg Nutrition Center at www.enc-online.org

An Expert's POV on Gluten-Free and Soy Allergens A t the American Egg Board/Egg Nutrition Center, we are often asked if eggs should be considered gluten-free. With the incidence of gluten allergies on the rise, this is an important question that can have great health implications for many Americans. Gluten-Free According to Dr. Steven Taylor from The Food Allergy Research and Resource Program (FARRP) at the University of Nebraska, eggs should be considered gluten-free. Dr. Taylor points out that many gluten-free products contain eggs and they do not test positive for gluten. Although it is likely that egg-laying chickens eat wheat grain containing gluten it is also likely that the birds digest the gluten and break it down to it's constituent amino acids, which in turn are used to build chicken and egg proteins. Little if any of the gluten appears to make it to the egg in an intact form. Soy Allergens This appears to be the case regarding soy allergenicity and eggs as well. Although one recent study indicated that small amounts of isoflavones from the soy in chicken feed apparently is transferred to the egg, protein fractions from soy are broken down during the digestive process and are not likely transferred to the egg or meat of the chicken. So folks with soy allergies can enjoy eggs without worrying about a potential allergic reaction. Baked Egg Ingredients May Improve Tolerances Egg allergy affects around 2% of children younger than 5 years old. While studies show that 80% of children eventually outgrow egg allergy, and most in the general population do so by school age, there are still many children retaining egg allergy into their teenage years. It appears that the longer the egg allergy persists, the less likely tolerance develops. This makes eating a variety of foods, in particular outside the home, very challenging, as eggs are present in many prepared foods. According to a study published in the August 2012 issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, research indicates that some egg-allergic individuals can tolerate baked egg (as in a muffin), as heating decreases allergenicity by altering the protein structure responsible for triggering an allergic reaction. Recognizing this, researchers characterized the immunologic changes associated with ingestion of baked egg and evaluated the role that baked egg diets play in the development of tolerance to regular egg. Results indicated that the majority of subjects with egg allergy can tolerate baked egg. Long-term ingestion of baked egg is well tolerated and accelerates the development of tolerance to regular egg. These findings present an important shift in the treatment paradigm for egg allergy, as clinical management can improve the quality of life of egg-allergic children and ideally, promote earlier tolerance development.

Why U.S. Eggs? From Atlanta to Dubai to Hong Kong, buyers know about the "egg-ceptional" qualities of U.S. eggs and egg products. Not only is the U.S. the world's second-largest egg-producing country, it also produces eggs of the highest quality in the world. The American egg industry maintains strict quality control and sanitation measures that are more stringent than is required by law. Immediately after they are laid, eggs are washed, sanitized, graded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and packed. After packing, U.S. eggs are refrigerated throughout the shipping and marketing process. As you see through this website, you can easily see why U.S. eggs rank among the highest in the world for distinguished quality and assured safety.

Egg Allergies An average of two percent of the population under age five develops an egg allergy. However, most children outgrow their egg allergy by late childhood. Despite the allergenicity of foods such as eggs, experts do not encourage avoiding these foods when introducing solids to infants. According to the 2016 National Academies of Science, Engineering, & Medicine food allergy report , there may be “benefits of introducing allergenic foods in the first year of life to infants when a child is developmentally ready: around 6 months of age, and not before 4 months.” This is based on studies showing a possible decrease in the development of food allergies when food allergens are introduced at 4 to 6 months of age. This advice is consistent with recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Additional information on all food allergies and their symptoms is available at FARE-Food Allergy Research & Education and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases .