Selling Eggs?

[Rebecka]

Okay, so my lovely girls are producing far more than we can eat. We thought about just putting a sign out saying we have eggs. What have I NOT thought of here? This is all very new to us and I read some stuff about baking soda washes or some stuff.. I don't get it. Is there some reason I can't sell them as is ? I mean, we keep the nest boxes clean. Real clean. We were gifted two hundred egg cartons. Is there anything special I need to do with them? Some sort of cleaning or something? What about price? We are not looking to profit by any means. I just want to keep some space in my fridge for other food. Farm eggs are going for about 2.00 a dozen here. Your insights would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Farmfresh]

Why not a profit?!

Our farm eggs are far better than the garbage they usually sell at the store. We deserve a profit. I might START at $2.00 but around here at least free range eggs are selling for $3.75 a box or MORE!!!

I used to keep 50 laying hens and sold eggs mostly to co-workers at my work and hubby's. I did not wash the eggs I just made sure they were the cream of the crop - biggest, best, freshest and clean, clean, clean. I DID make up some sample boxes of 6 eggs and gave those away free to any new prospective customers. I also took time to educate those customers. I told them how my hens were maintained and exactly WHY my eggs were worth the money. Sometimes I made homemade custard, cakes or egg noodles to share with my prospects to demonstrate how much better a fresh egg makes things.

I NEVER had a surplus once I had established my customer base. It has been about 7 years since I stopped selling eggs. (I changed jobs and had some life changes that made me size WAY back) When I sold them 7 years ago I bought new cartons http://www.eggcartons.com/ and sold for $2.00 a box.

 

[FarmerChick]

I had over 300 chickens and we sold eggs for over 10 years at the markets. Now down to about 50 chickens (selling out and closing down, tired lol)

but you can sell them "as is" dirty

I use only water to wash off the eggs a wet scrubby sponge and a quick wipe gets them clean for sale

but a few farmers do sell them without ever washing them and honestly they are just nasty looking in the carton but some customers buy only from those farmers....they want there eggs exactly how they come out of the chicken

We sell for $4 per doz....and other farmers are doing $5 per doz around here

I must use new cartons to sell at the market. Used cartons are not allowed but selling out of ur home u can do whatever u want. You can put out a sign and sell ur surplus and tell repeat customers to keep bringing back the cartons.

good luck

 

[TanksHill]

I have sold on Craigslist as well as a sign at the bottom my driveway. I only sell my surplus which lately is not very much. I never wash my eggs. My hens only lay in the nesting boxes and they never have anything on them. Maybe a feather or pine shavings but that's it. Eggs here go for 3.00 per dozen when selling to my close friends I often give 2 for 5 bucks.

When I was selling on CL I would explain to people exactly how I do things. No wash, straight into the fridge, don't expect to peel them. That whole thing. They are good with it.

Good luck.

gina

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I have over 50 laying hens, but they on strike now. I can run out of room in one refrigerator real quick, so I have 2 small ones to fall back on, just for eggs.
I sell my eggs for 3.00/dozen and they don't get old. Sometimes I trade my eggs for other things, like seafood, venison, firewood, etc.
If the eggs look clean, I put them straight in the carton, which are recycled. Customers return the cartons over and over again. If they need to be wiped down, I use a wet paper towel and wipe down the few that has a smudge on them.
Every once and a while someone complains about the price being more than the store. So I say,'thats okay.' And if the conversation continues, I just say,"Then buy the eggs at the store."
If your sign says,'fresh yard eggs' no one will expect you to have taken huge steps in sanitizing everything. They will know they are getting better tasting, healthier, safer eggs from you than the store could provide.

 

[FarmerChick]

and a huge difference it is from store eggs to fresh eggs

fresh eggs have a taste and fluff that older store eggs can't compare


customers tell me that all the time lol

 

[patandchickens]

Because laws vary a LOT from state to state, even regarding just selling the eggs off your front porch (as opposed to off your property), it is really worth looking up what Indiana, specifically, wants in terms of cleaning, cartons, etc etc.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[me&thegals]

I do all the above, but we do wash. I just use very hot water and dish soap. We try to have a variety of colors--shades of brown, white, green.

I educate people ahead of time about color of yolk, stiffness of whites, difficulty in using hardboiled the first week or 2. I tell them how the hens are kept, what they eat.

We charge $2.50/dozen, but I should go up. We have way more demand than we can keep up with, especially since the hens are either on strike or aging right now...

 

[Rebecka]

Wow! Thanks for all the insight. I wasn't very clear I guess. I do wipe the eggs off when they have anything at all on them, which is rare. Straight into the fridge huh? We typically leave them on the counter overnight, but I can see why going into the fridge right away is a better practice. We have roughly 100 hens. Only about 40 or so are laying yet. We hadn't intended on having so many hens. We mostly just wanted to keep us and family in good healthy eggs. As it turns out, my girls are so sweet and I am not willing to part with even one of them.

I have seen signs around here where people are selling them for 1.50 to 2.00 but you cant see their chickens. Ours are right there where they can been seen being happy and clean. I do have a few we refer to as feral chickens. They don't get on well with the others so they are free range. The rest have a rather large chicken yard and coop.

So, here is what I am thinking about doing. Bring in the eggs, wash them lightly. Nothing major like scrubbing and bleaching and stuff. Then, into the fridge. Make a sign that says " Fresh Eggs 2.00 " and maybe raise the price later ?

 

[Emerald]

I can't free range mine but folks can see them and hear them out back, I can only get $1.50 a dozen around here as I am not the only one selling fresh eggs(Organic eggs are rare around here but go for about $4) I only have about 30 hens now and some are due for freezer camp. But I only have family and a couple customers and they take every egg I can't use.
I do plan on making chicken tractors hopefully this winter for next year so that the eggs and meat will be much better.
Do look up at the extension office what your state rules are-I can sell out the front door but unless I weigh them I can not state that they are a certain size, etc... but I can tell what kind of feed I give them and if they are organic or free range etc.
I do have to wash them every so often- we tend to be super dry here and they pound down the straw and grasses in the coop and pen and the first rain that comes thru tends to make it a quagmire out there so I do get a few foot prints.
We can re use egg cartons out the door but have to have brand new if I take them to the market.

I also found a decent way to have hard boiled eggs that peel even when fresh- I put them in the pan, add cold water to about 1 inch over the eggs, bring to a boil, cover and take off the heat, set timer for 15 minutes and then dump out the hot water and crack the eggs in the pan while they are still hot! just kinda jumble them around in the pan till you see the cracked shells then quickly add lots of cold water. for the most part this method will let you peel the eggs without loosing most of the white--something about the cold water getting thru the cracks helps the white and shell come apart.
But some times I just like to cut the hard boiled egg right in half in the shell and scoop out the egg with a spoon and eat it hot with a bit of butter and salt and pepper!