That eggs are one of the most widely used foods in gastronomy around the world and a fundamental pillar of a balanced diet is a fact that cannot be denied.
Although they have had detractors for decades due to their alleged negative influence on cholesterol, thanks to recent scientific studies that disprove this information, they are a food that is gaining popularity again. In addition, their great versatility in the kitchen and their enormous nutritional load have made them the star element of many high protein diets to lose weight such as the paleo diet, which has more and more followers around the world.
However, something that is unknown to a large part of the public is that not all eggs are the same : therefore, in this guide to know the categories of eggs we break down all the details of each one and the importance they have when choosing what eggs to consume.
The egg and cholesterol dilemma
For years, the habitual consumption of eggs had been related to an increase in cholesterol and medical professionals ruled that he could not take more than one egg a day and, as a cardiovascular protection measure, they recommended not taking more than three a week .
In a way, they were right, since the egg yolk itself contains cholesterol – about 200 mg in the case of medium-sized ones – but where they were wrong was to focus on quantity and not quality: recent studies have shown that “good” cholesterol (HDL) values are better among people who eat an egg a day versus those who eat it less times a week.
There are many studies of this type that refute the long-held belief that eggs have a negative influence on hypercholesterolemia , and that they show that they are not harmful to health. An example is a study that concluded that people who eat 4 or more chicken eggs per week do not have a greater risk of having their cholesterol levels increased and consequently suffering a severe cardiovascular problem than those who consume less than one a week ( Zazpe et al., 2011).
Therefore, contrary to popular belief, the consumption of eggs on a regular basis does not endanger cardiovascular health and is not only highly safe, but is also recommended in a balanced diet. The only concern when consuming this product should then be about its quality, and that is where the different categories of eggs come in that you will be able to know thanks to the labeling of the shell.
What do the numbers printed on the eggshell mean?
The labeling on the shell and its enigmatic meaning are of great importance when talking about the categories of eggs . Having the ability to interpret those seemingly random numbers that are printed on the outside of the egg answers many of the doubts that consumers have about its origin and the journey it takes from farm to table.
The majority of Spaniards – 74% according to the ‘ Huevometer ‘ survey carried out in 2016 – mistakenly believe that the eggshell code refers to the expiration date, and the remaining 16% who are aware that it that these digits represent has to do with the origin of the egg and the production system through which it was obtained, only 3.4% know how to interpret each number correctly.
So what does each digit in the numerical code correspond to? Very simple: taking as an example the code 3 ES 64 010 496, the first digit corresponds to the category of the egg depending on the type of breeding of the hens that have put it -and that we will explain below-; the letters, to the country of the European Union where the farm is located (in this case it would be Spain); the next two numbers, to the province; the 3 that follow, to the municipality; and the last 3, to the specific farm from which the egg comes.
The categories of eggs according to the breeding of hens
As we have already explained, the first number of the labeling present on the eggshells in all the countries of the European Union -always between 3 and 0-, provides information on the type of rearing that the hens have had and the degree of well-being in which the laying of eggs has occurred.
Category 0: Hens raised in the open air with natural food
The eggs marked with the number 0 are those that come from chickens that, in addition to being raised in the open air, feed on products from organic farming and do not receive any additional treatment -such as coloring agents or antibiotics-.
Category 1: Hens with access to the open air
Also known as “free-range eggs ”, category 1 eggs are marked with this digit, which implies that the hens from which they come have been raised in industrial chicken coops that have access to open-air pens. so that the birds can enjoy conditions similar to those of life in the wild.
Category 2: Hens raised on the ground
The number 2 at the beginning of the code printed on the shell of an egg indicates that it comes from chickens that do not live crammed into cages, but are locked in huge sheds without the possibility of accessing the outside.
Most of them do not see sunlight in their entire lives, but depend on permanent artificial lighting that stimulates them to lay eggs incessantly, with the bone lesions that this entails since in each egg they lose more calcium than they are allowed to. gives time to assimilate through their diet. In addition, they are also subjected to poor health, space and hygiene conditions, since the density of hens per square meter – up to 12 – is very high.
Category 3: Cage Raised Hens
Category 3 eggs are marked with this number and indicate that the hens that have laid them are raised in cages stacked in rows of up to five heights in which they hardly have room to move , with all the damage that this generates for well-being. animal: they are forced to spend most of their existence standing, without space to spread their wings or the possibility of nesting or climbing on a perch as they do when they are free.
In addition, to increase productivity, as many hens as space allows are put in the cages and, as cages are stacked on top of others, the feces of some fall on the other, which causes the proliferation of diseases and infections. A 2012 European directive made it mandatory to increase the size of the cages to 750 cm 2 , but this only guarantees that each animal has a living space slightly larger than that of a sheet of A4 paper (627 cm 2 )
Other ways to classify eggs
Categories of eggs according to quality
In addition to separating the categories of eggs according to the type of rearing, another classification of eggs can be made in terms of the quality of their category, which will vary depending on whether or not they are suitable for human consumption.
Category A eggs
Category A eggs are those that are considered suitable for direct human consumption and that therefore encompass the rest of the categories that we have access to in the different supermarkets. These eggs are those that are in optimal conditions of appearance and consumption and that pass all the necessary quality controls to be sold to the public.
Category B eggs
Category B eggs , on the other hand, are those that, due to certain circumstances, are unable to become suitable for direct human consumption . This does not mean that their consumption produces health risks, but simply that they do not pass the quality controls necessary to be able to be put on sale for a series of reasons: those with cracked skin or are moldy, broken, have polluting residues. , they are not fresh, etc.
Although its quality is slightly lower, these eggs may be consumed after passing a number of processes, and therefore on the s for use in the food industry for the preparation of other foods such as bakery products , meat products, desserts, milk, etc.
Egg categories according to size
Finally – and this is the best known option – we can also classify the eggs intended for consumption (that is, those of category A and type 0, 1, 2 or 3) according to their size and weight:
- XL Eggs: Over 73 grams of weight
- Eggs L: With a weight between 63 and 73 grams
- Eggs M: From 53 grams to 63 grams
- Eggs S: Less than 53 grams in weight
The importance when choosing the category of the egg
Any egg that we find for sale will necessarily fall into category A, and the size will be able to be chosen by the consumer based on their tastes and the recipes that we want to prepare. But, when talking about quality and modes of production, we must take into account a number of aspects.
The more information we have about the way food is made, the need for consumption that does not ignore the modes of production becomes more and more evident. With regard to eggs, consumer and animal protection associations at both the EU and national level point out that free-range and organic eggs are not only more respectful of animals, but also have a higher protein content, a more intense flavor and greater freshness and quality.
The risks of egg categories 2 and 3
Those in favor of a healthy and sustainable diet should not lean towards category 2 and 3 eggs since, being intensively farmed, they usually contain artificial colors that are highly harmful to health, with the aim of achieving a more intense color in the yolks they disguise. its lower quality.
The reason for this is that, in the popular imagination, the more intense the color of the yolk, the better the egg – when in reality it is the opposite, since category 0 organic eggs have a much lighter yolk-
Moreover, apart from the colorants, eggs coming from non – organic farms are added in hormones occasions growth, antibiotics and other s drug be to increase its size and prevent possible diseases that can arise from insufficient feeding, overcrowding and unsanitary conditions to which chickens are subjected on intensive farms.
Animal cruelty and eggs
In addition to the inclusion of artificial elements that can be harmful to health, categories of eggs 2 and 3 – the latter especially – stand out for trying to achieve the greatest possible number of benefits by producing about 300 eggs per year (compared to 80 that they put the chickens of yesteryear) at the cost of the birds’ health.
The conditions to which those who live in these farms are subjected touch (and sometimes exceed) the limits of animal abuse: not only do they have no space to move and they do not see sunlight, but they also subject them to mutilation of animals. beak so that, in desperation, they won’t hurt themselves or attack each other.
On the other hand, they also force them to molt their feathers, leaving them in the dark, because with each molt the ovulation cycle begins anew. Faced with such atrocity, consumers should raise awareness to stop consuming category 2 and 3 eggs , demanding that our supermarkets and trusted points of sale have organic and free-range eggs.
The healthiest, cheapest and humane option between eggs
Category 0 organic eggs can be found more and more easily both in small shops and in large stores, so that their accessibility is total and nothing prevents us from consuming these products, which are not only those of the highest general quality, but also also the most respectful of chickens in terms of production mode. Therefore, if we can afford it, category 0 organic eggs are the best option .
However, not all are advantages: the price of the categories of the healthiest eggs is considerably higher than those of lower quality, and this can cause their consumption to be more restricted.
There is no doubt that investing in higher quality food means investing in our health in the long term, but it is true that there are certain pockets that cannot afford the € 3.5 on average that the cheapest dozen organic eggs costs. -In front of the € 0.90 of other categories-. Therefore, the ideal intermediate solution is to consume category 1 free-range eggs , which are more affordable and relatively more sustainable, and occasionally combine them with organic or category 2 eggs.
References
Zazpe, I., Beunza, JJ, Bes-Rastrollo, M., Warnberg, J., de la Fuente-Arrillaga, C., Benito, S., Vázquez, Z… SUN Project Investigators (2011). Egg consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease in the SUN Project. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition . doi: 10.1038 / ejcn.2011.30
