Selling eggs to the public

This sign is available free from the VermX website

If you are lucky enough to get an excessive number of eggs, you can put up a sign and sell them to passers-by, or even at a local market. I know some people that do this, then put the cash into a pot to pay for their chickens' food and various supplements, which can really add up. Thankfully, if you have less than fifty hens in your backyard, this is one thing you can do in the UK legally and without any complicated permissions. Just get a sign from any good farmers store or the internet and stick it up!

If you're selling eggs to the public, it makes sense to protect them by properly washing and disinfecting the eggs. You're not legally required to do this, and some say you shouldn't wash them as it removes a 'protective bloom', but I think it's a good idea. I use specialised egg wash granules, then soak, rinse and dry my eggs before boxing them. You can easily do this in your kitchen sink (whilst wearing gloves - that stuff is strong) and it'll make sure no nasty viruses are transferred from the coop to your customers kitchen. Egg wash granules, such as Chicktec can be bought from any farmers stockist or easily sourced on the internet if the link on this page is broken.

How to test the freshness of an egg
An egg will normally stay fresh for six weeks, but to check simply pop the egg into a container full of water. If it floats, the egg has gone off and should be destroyed. If it sinks and lays in its' side, it's fresh. An egg that sinks and stands in its' tip at the bottom of the container is on the verge of going off and shouldn't be sold, but you can eat it yourself that day quite safely. 

When you pop the eggs into the box, check there are no cracks and put a 'Best Before Date' on the packaging.

I recommend that you write 'Best before three weeks from [insert date of purchase here]' on the box. 

The Legal Bits: Egg Stamping

As I've already mentioned, simply selling a few dozen eggs at your gate is completely legal. However you may have noticed that when you buy eggs from the supermarket, they all have a red stamp on them. This is to identify the producer and method of farming and helps to track the source in instances of salmonella.

For completeness I've included the latest laws from the DEFRA website covering egg standards and emboldened the key points, but it's good news for us backyard keepers as the laws will not affect you until you have at least fifty hens!

Legally and briefly:

If you own more than 50 hens and your eggs are sold at a local market but could end up being sold on the open market as class A, then you must put a producer code on them.

If you own more than 350 hens and your eggs are sold on the open market as class A, then you must comply with the full EU egg stamping regulations, which are at the bottom of this post, along with an explanation of the stamp.

As well as stamping the eggs, you also need to 'class' them. This is the information from the egginfo website:

Under European law there are two classes of egg quality: A & B.

Grade A eggs are the highest grade. They are naturally clean, fresh eggs, internally perfect with shells intact and the air sac not exceeding 6mm in depth. The yolk must not move away from the centre of the egg on rotation. Grade A eggs are sold as shell eggs.

Grade B eggs are broken out and pasteurised. In addition, there is another class of eggs called industrial eggs which are for non-food use only and are used in products such as shampoo and soap.

Marking and Quality Standards - The Laws. Since 1 January 2004, Council Regulation 5/2001 has required all Class A eggs sold at retail level in the EU to be marked with a code identifying the establishment, country of origin and method of production. In addition, the Registration of Establishments Regulations 2003 requires all laying hens establishments to be registered and allocated a distinguishing number comprising of a digit indicating the farming method, Member State code and identification number. Establishments with fewer than 350 laying hens and those rearing breeding laying hens do not have to be registered under these Regulations, unless any of their eggs are destined to be graded for marketing as class A. Since 1 July 2005, ungraded eggs sold at local public markets need to be marked with a code identifying the method of production and the establishment. Producers with less than 50 birds are not required to mark their eggs with a producer code. However, individual markets still may have their own rules which require the stamping of a producer code on hen eggs. Information from www.defra.gov.uk; correct at 9 February 2011.