Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

signal status listen live donate
listen live donate signal status
listen live donate signal status
  • News
    • beats
    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    • California Dream
    • Videos
    • Photos
  • Music
    • genres
    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Roots
    • Eclectic
    • Videos
    • Daily Playlist
  • Programs + Podcasts
    • news
    • Morning Edition
    • All Things Considered
    • Marketplace
    • Insight
    • California State of Mind
    • The View From Here
    • music
    • Acid Jazz
    • At the Opera
    • Classical Music
    • Connections
    • Excellence in Jazz
    • Hey, Listen!
    • Insight Music
    • K-ZAP on CapRadio
    • Mick Martin's Blues Party
    • Programs A-Z
    • Podcast Directory
  • Schedules
    • News
    • Music
    • ClassicalStream
    • JazzStream
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Daily Playlist
  • Community
    • Events Calendar
    • CapRadio Garden
    • CapRadio Reads
    • CapRadio Travels
    • Ticket Giveaways
  • Support
    • Evergreen Gift
    • One-Time Gift
    • Corporate Support / Underwriting
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Gift
    • Legacy Gift
    • Endowment Gift
    • Volunteering
    • Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • e‑Newsletter
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Close Menu
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
  • Food and Sustainability
  •  

Making Sense Of Egg Labels

  •  Lesley McClurg 
Monday, January 25, 2016 | Sacramento, CA
Listen
/
Update RequiredTo play audio, update browser or Flash plugin.
Lesley McClurg / Capital Public Radio

Andrew Abrahams holds a dozen animal welfare approved eggs from Long Dream Farm in Lincoln, CA.

Lesley McClurg / Capital Public Radio

Many consumers are increasingly animal-welfare conscious. But, when it comes to buying eggs the options can be overwhelming -- cage-free, organic, pasture-raised. Are the labels worth the extra money?

Jennifer Fearing, an animal welfare consultant for the Humane Society of the United States, says it depends. Sometimes your dollars pay for better conditions on a farm, and other times labels are misleading. 

She's is standing in front of the egg display case at a Raley’s grocery store in Sacramento.

“You’ve got price points at $3, $4, $5, $6 and $7,” says Fearing.

She says egg labels should reflect conditions on a chicken farm, but...

"Claims like cage-free, free-range, free-roaming, pasture based those are not regulated, the government isn’t proclaiming what cage-free is," Fearing explains.

EGGLABEL2

A label on a dozen eggs at Hilliker's Ranch in Lakeside, CA. Lesley McClurg / Capital Public Radio

There are some certification programs where a third party inspects a farm to assure labels are accurate. For example, organic farms are regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Which means chickens on an organic farm are cage-free, and must be allowed outdoors. Plus, they must be fed organic feed. 

But, organic eggs are a less than 1 percent of the market.

How -to -read -egg -label -full

The bulk of the market is conventional eggs. Fearing says most chickens are raised in battery cages, wire cages connected in rows and columns. The goal is to maximize the number of birds in a barn. 

In California, egg farmers recently had to modify their battery cages to comply with a recent law mandating more space for each bird. Chickens must now be able to spread their wings and turn around.

Batterycagep -chicken

A row of chickens housed in modified battery cages at Hilliker's Ranch in Lakeside, CA. Lesley McClurg / Capital Public Radio

Frank Hilliker grew up on a conventional chicken farm outside of San Diego. He now manages Hilliker's Ranch.

He pulls open a door to a barn housing about 2,500 brown and white birds. Beady eyes turn towards the light. Hens brush up against each other inside narrow wire cages running the length of the barn. 

The birds will be confined their entire lives.

Still, Hilliker is a classic businessman and he’s following market demand. That’s why he's gradually switching to cage-free facilities, where birds are packed from floor to ceiling, but they have ample space to play on a white structure that looks like a closet organizer.

Cage -free -chickensP

These "cage-free" birds at Hilliker's Ranch have more room to play and jump, but they are never let outside. Lesley McClurg / Capital Public Radio

"They perch, they jump from one level to the next," Hilliker says. "They're more social, and even sing more when they’re in the cage-free house versus the cage house."

Yet, these cage-free chickens will never go outside either.

Chickens with outdoor access produce eggs labeled free-range or free-roaming. But, animal welfare expert -- Jennifer Fearing -- says you shouldn’t necessarily picture birds frolicking in a pasture.

"So, there could be a little door open at the end of a barn for a few hours day that lets out onto a six square foot patio that no chicken ever wants to go onto," explains Fearing.

If you're looking for chickens who are allowed to frolic in a pasture, look for eggs labeled ‘animal welfare approved’ or ‘certified humane' -- usually they cost about twice as much as conventional eggs.

Andrew Abrahams runs Long Dream Farm in Lincoln, CA about an hour northeast of Sacramento. His eggs are animal welfare approved, and his farm looks like an idyllic scene from a child’s book.

EGGLABEL-chickens1

Chickens mill about on Long Dream Farm in Lincoln, CA. Lesley McClurg / Capital Public Radio

"Chickens get to live their lives outside on grass as much as possible confined as little as possible," says Abrahams.

About a thousand large fluffy chickens are pecking all over a grassy hill covered with oak trees.

Abrahams says he believes your egg purchases reflect your values.

"You’re voting with your dollars. So, you’re deciding whether you want to vote for chickens living in some kind of confined system being forced to lay and then being discarded," explains Abrahams. "Or, chickens that are living pretty long, happy lives outside."

He swears his eggs taste richer than conventional eggs. And I have to admit that after doing my own taste test, the flavor was incredible. Still there’s little to no academic research on whether or not your scrambled eggs will taste better if the chickens are happier.

Pastured -chickens

Long Dream Farm in Lincoln, CA. Lesley McClurg / Capital Public Radio


Follow us for more stories like this

CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you.  As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.

Donate Today  

    Related Stories

  • It's Not Clear If New Animal Welfare Law Is Creating Better Conditions

    Monday, June 22, 2015
    In 2008, Californians passed a law by a two-thirds majority to give egg-laying hens more space to move around. Farmers have had the last seven years to comply. We visit a farm to see if conditions have improved.

 eggs

Lesley McClurg

Former Food And Sustainability Reporter

Lesley McClurg reported for Capital Public Radio’s Food and Sustainability through January 2016.  Read Full Bio 

 @lesleywmcclurg Email Lesley McClurg

Coronavirus Newsletter

Get answers to your questions, the latest updates and easy access to the resources you need, delivered to your inbox.

 

Want to know what to expect? Here's a recent newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

We'll send you weekly emails so you can stay informed about the coronavirus in California.

Browse all newsletters

More Food and Sustainability Stories

Randol White / CapRadio

Beer Law The Focus Of McGeorge Event, Review

April 22, 2021

Most Viewed

California Coronavirus Updates: A strike Of Teachers Aides And Food Service Workers Has Been Called Off

California Coronavirus Updates: Sacramentans Are Getting Vaccinated, But The County Remains In The Red Tier

How To Get A Vaccine Appointment In California, And Other Things To Know About The Vaccine

Signatures Are In. What You Need To Know About The Gavin Newsom Recall Effort.

Sacramento County To Keep Motels For Homeless Residents Open Through August

We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

Most Viewed

California Coronavirus Updates: A strike Of Teachers Aides And Food Service Workers Has Been Called Off

California Coronavirus Updates: Sacramentans Are Getting Vaccinated, But The County Remains In The Red Tier

How To Get A Vaccine Appointment In California, And Other Things To Know About The Vaccine

Signatures Are In. What You Need To Know About The Gavin Newsom Recall Effort.

Sacramento County To Keep Motels For Homeless Residents Open Through August

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    • (916) 278-8900
    • Toll-free (877) 480-5900
    • Email Us
    • Submit a News Tip
  • Contact Us

  • About Us

    • Contact Us / Feedback
    • Coverage
    • Directions
    • Jobs & Internships
    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Press
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile App
    • On Air Schedules
    • Smart Speakers
    • Playlist
    • Podcasts
    • RSS
  • Connect With Us

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2021, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.