Advantage Good Agricultural Practices Manual

9.4 Egg Handling

If eggs are not collected and stored properly, contamination of the egg can occur.

This Good Agricultural Practice applies to:

All non-quota egg farms.

Farms that hold egg quota are required to follow licence requirements of the Egg Farmers of Ontario and are not included here.

Examples: Chicken, duck, pheasant, quail and geese egg farms.

What needs to be done

Collect and store eggs properly to prevent contamination from occurring.

How to do it

Collection

Collect eggs daily at a minimum and more frequently in warmer weather.

Collect eggs in clean trays, baskets or containers. If trays are made of cardboard and cannot be cleaned, they should be used only once and then discarded. If they are reused, make sure to wash and clean them properly with appropriate sanitizers.

Handle eggs carefully to prevent cracking.

Remove all eggs that are cracked, leaking or extremely dirty as they are not fit for human consumption. Dispose of them appropriately or send them to a grader for further processing.

Storage

Sort and store uncracked, undamaged eggs on clean surfaces.

Store eggs in a refrigerator as soon as possible after collecting.

Monitor the storage of eggs so that they are kept at temperatures between 7° and 13°C (45° and 55°F).

Store empty egg trays off the floor.

Cleaning and Grading

Separate floor eggs from nest/cage eggs. Discuss next steps with your grader.

If you are selling eggs beyond the farm gate, they must be graded, as outlined in OMAFRA's information sheet titled Ontario's Egg Sales/Grading Program.

Did you know?

In eggs that are properly handled, there is a low chance of salmonella contamination. However, the risk increases significatnly on farms that do not follow good agricultural practices. In 1998 a salmonella outbreak in Hawaii was traced to a farm where eggs were not refridgerated at the farm. In 2005, a salmonella outbreak in Australia caused 135 people to be sick and was traced to a farm using poor egg and container washing practices.

Records to keep

Temperature Monitoring Record. We have provided a record template for your use in the Training and Support Tools section. A printable version is also available. Or keep your own record that includes:

• Date/time
• Temperature
• Initials
  
  

If you need an audit

Be prepared for the auditor to review:

• Temperature Monitoring Records for egg storage
  
  

Laws and regulations that apply

The Livestock and Livestock Products Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. L. 20, Eggs Regulation, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 724, s. 5 (1) prohibits the sale within Ontario of eggs for human consumption except eggs graded, packed and marked in accordance with this Regulation. However, s. 5 (2) allows a producer to sell eggs that are not graded, packed and marked as required if the eggs are produced on the producer's own farm, are clean and not leaking and are sold or offered for sale to consumers for their own consumption only on the farm premises. S. 7 provides that eggs that do not comply with the standards set out in this Regulation shall be rejected and known as "rejects." S. 8 states that no person shall purchase or sell, or offer for sale, or ship or transport rejects for use as food, or in the preparation of food, for human consumption.

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