Quote:
Originally Posted by ThaHero
o.k. maybe not but I did have a question if the date on my eggs is past do I throw em out or crack and sniff? Or is there something you can tell just by looking at them?
Yes, you should be able to crack the egg into a separate bowl and see differences in yolk and white. The yolk will lose color - not that a lot of supermarket eggs have color to begin with. It will also get wrinkly. The white will get runny and lose its form. But even with these signs of degradation, they can still be good to eat.
Supermarket eggs are unfertilized, but you can buy fertilized eggs from a farmer and incubate your own chicks. Or you could eat the fertilized eggs with no ill effects. Chickens who are laying eggs act different than chickens who set on eggs to hatch them. Farmers know the difference and do not leg even fertilized eggs sit around.
Some people believe the fertilized eggs are healthier. I don't know. But one thing that is true is that if you have hens, they will be stressed if there is not a rooster around - so it is to the benefit of the farmer to have a rooster for every 8-12 laying hens or so.