In Germany the laws regarding food have the farmers print the date of "production" onto every single egg.

Yeah... have to crack them separately and sniff.

sanitaeter said:

In Germany the laws regarding food have the farmers print the date of "production" onto every single egg.

Very german of them....

Asian peeps be like:

Wait. Eggs expire?

(Mostly because any egg we store tends to get used/eaten within a week or two, long before it will ever expire despite being unrefrigerated.)

They're probably fine if they've been in the fridge the whole time. Worst case, she can just put them in water. If they float, they're bad.

Algester said:

Very german of them....

There were icidents with salmonellosis in retirement homes caused by desserts made with raw eggs. People died. Politicians had to act. It's like the thing with coffee cups with "Danger! Hot liquid!" on the lid.

AdventZero said:

Asian peeps be like:

Wait. Eggs expire?

(Mostly because any egg we store tends to get used/eaten within a week or two, long before it will ever expire despite being unrefrigerated.)

Come to think of it I don't think I've ever had an egg go rotten before.

Random_Fanguy said:

Come to think of it I don't think I've ever had an egg go rotten before.

Eggs can last a LONG time if refrigerated.

Random_Fanguy said:

Come to think of it I don't think I've ever had an egg go rotten before.

To be fair, it takes a bit of effort to gets eggs to go bad. They tend to go bad quickly if any moisture seeps in, as the egg shell itself is very porous. If you wash your eggs (for whatever reason, such as one breaking while in transit and smearing all the rest) but not using them immediately, prepare to find them rotten within a few days.

AdventZero said:

To be fair, it takes a bit of effort to gets eggs to go bad. They tend to go bad quickly if any moisture seeps in, as the egg shell itself is very porous. If you wash your eggs (for whatever reason, such as one breaking while in transit and smearing all the rest) but not using them immediately, prepare to find them rotten within a few days.

Wait, you are not supposed to wash the eggs?

Runnerdown said:

Wait, you are not supposed to wash the eggs?

From the consumer's perspective, generally no. Improper washing increases chance of bacteria contamination and leads to moisture seeping in.

Eggs in American and Japan (and IIRC Australia and the Scandinavian countries) come prewashed, though they do it with a bleached-based sanitizer solution using a specialized process. This reduces the risk of salmonella infection but at the cost of compromising the shell's natural outer coating ("bloom"), so eggs treated that way have to be refrigerated from start to finish in the supply chain.

Most other countries don't do so, so their eggs can be kept outside unrefrigerated. They instead manage salmonella risk in the chickens themselves, such as mandating/recommending vaccinations in the hens or requiring a certain level of cleanliness in chicken pens.

IIRC the UK expressly prohibit suppliers/distributors from washing eggs; people who go against this are slapped with a hefty fine.

Again, going back to the consumer's perspective, there's not much need to (re)wash the eggs. It's safe to wash the eggs if you immediately use them after, but it's probably unnecessary unless the egg is visibly dirty or something.

NNescio said:

Long words

I didnt expect that, but I apreciate it.

sanitaeter said:

In Germany the laws regarding food have the farmers print the date of "production" onto every single egg.

Yet they arent followed ... i have yet to see a single egg from REWE, Marktkauf, Kaufland, Lidl, Aldi Süd, Aldi Nord, Netto, Netto, Penny and the local market to ever print the date on the egg, instead of somewhere hidden on the package. Edit: Might aswell also add Indoor Wholesale Markets and Selgros ...