The Safety Scoop on Eggs

The Safety Scoop on Eggs. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. Easter is early this year. It always falls on the Sunday immediately after the first full moon following the Vernal Equinox or beginning of spring. The egg was originally a Pagan symbol of the rebirth of the earth and was adopted by early Christians as a symbol of the resurrection. Of course egg consumption increases during the Easter holiday season, which is all the more reason for consumers to handle eggs with care. It's the season for Easter egg hunts, but egg food safety should be a concern year round. Jim Postlewait of the Oregon Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Division says that eggs are a perishable food that may carry pathogens like salmonella. POSTLEWAIT: We are concerned about refrigeration and cooking to either reduce the amount of pathogens through refrigeration, or to eliminate them through cooking. The modern day egg industry use automated systems that actually make the egg safer prior to purchase. From the hen house to packaging, the egg never comes in contact with the human hand. POSTLEWAIT: By the time that dozen eggs gets to the retail market, it has probably not had any humans touching the egg up until then. The consumer is probably the very first person to touch that egg. That makes it critical for the consumer to properly store the egg in refrigeration and then thoroughly cook it before eating. Hard cooked eggs are popular during Easter, but should not be out of refrigeration for more than a couple of hours and should be consumed within the week. Postlewait says the difference between eggs and some of the recent foods connected to salmonella- like peanut butter and hazelnuts- is that you cook the eggs. POSTLEWAIT: Anytime you take a product and treat it with heat, and if you do a good job and don't cross-contaminate anything, then you should eliminate any concerns that you would have about pathogenic organisms. Postlewait says for Easter egg hunts, it is best to use plastic eggs. Real ones are vulnerable to the outside elements as the shell of a cooked egg is somewhat porous. POSTLEWAIT: My advice is that it's okay to color those Easter eggs and to have an Eastern egg hunt. But at the end of the hunt, you probably need to get rid of the eggs and not consume them. Egg producers have been having a tough time in the last few years with rising costs. Prices in 2008 were strong but last year saw a marked drop. Prices are expected to recover this year a bit, up perhaps 8-10% and supplies should be good. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.