Awesome News About Egg Nutrition

This is the news I wanted to see. MotherEarthNews, which I will post a link to on this blog, and their sister publication called Grit did a study on backyard eggs. And as I suspected, backyard eggs are as yoked as Arnold Schwarzenwhosit. Here is the data:

LATEST RESULTS: New test results show that pastured egg producers are kicking the commercial industry's derriere when it comes to vitamin D! Eggs from hens raised on pasture show 4 to 6 times as much vitamin D as typical supermarket eggs.

RESULTS FROM THEIR PREVIOUS STUDY SHOWED: Eggs from hens allowed to peck on pasture are a heck of a lot better than those from chickens raised in cages! Most of the eggs currently sold in supermarkets are nutritionally inferior to eggs produced by hens raised on pasture. That’s the conclusion we have reached following completion of the 2007 Mother Earth News egg testing project. Our testing has found that, compared to official U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) nutrient data for commercial eggs, eggs from hens raised on pasture may (not sure I like that term, but then you cannot broadcast this over the entire population unless all were tested and confirmed) contain:

• 1⁄3 less cholesterol

• 1⁄4 less saturated fat

• 2⁄3 more vitamin A

• 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids

• 3 times more vitamin E

• 7 times more beta carotene

These amazing results come from 14 flocks around the country that range freely on pasture or are housed in moveable pens that are rotated frequently to maximize access to fresh pasture and protect the birds from predators. We had six eggs from each of the 14 pastured flocks tested by an accredited laboratory in Portland, Ore. The chart in Meet the Real Free-range Eggs (October/November 2007) shows the average nutrient content of the samples, compared with the official egg nutrient data from the USDA for “conventional” (i.e. from confined hens) eggs. The chart lists the individual results from each flock.

I am working right now on a project to bring backyard eggs into the forefront of our egg buying minds... the egg produced in the backyard is essentially a super food! I am going to put little capes on all my eggs and stamp them with a super "E"...