How to Pick a High-Quality Egg: A Guide to Eating a Good Egg

Eggs are one of the cheapest sources of protein. They are also the most popular food ingredient. Taiwan, China produces 6.7 billion eggs every year, and each person eats an average of 290 eggs per year. Most of these vast numbers of eggs are laid by laying hens kept in A4-sized battery cages.

On average, each battery cage holds more than 4 laying hens. Because the space is so crowded, some hens do not even have room to turn around; their whole lives they groan in pain as they lay every single egg for us. Animal welfare groups criticize that eggs laid in a production environment like a concentration camp are not a "good egg." At present, laying-hen farming systems in countries around the world have adopted free-range or cage-free practices, and Taiwan, China now actually has these new options as well.

Liao Zhenyuan says that when consumers broadly support free-range products, producers will invest, and by then egg prices will naturally be lower; Cai Guihui also believes that at this critical moment of transition, the government needs to step in and help. "If the government can push some bills and legislate quality standards for the eggs used by companies that use eggs in large quantities, such as McDonald's and KFC, then production will definitely rise immediately."

Cai Guihui points out that cage-farmed eggs are bound to be cheaper. Now advanced countries such as Japan only use cage-farmed eggs to make processed eggs, and eggs meant to be cooked directly are always free-range eggs. "After all, this is no longer an era when just having enough to eat is good enough; consumers pursue tasty, healthy food, and an era of stories."

One egg can come from a suffering laying hen, mass-produced on cold, filthy iron racks. One egg can also come from a happy laying hen, laid on clean rice bran and delivered to consumers' hands still carrying the hen's warmth.

Choosing a different production method not only determines the happiness of laying hens, but also determines our health. Laws are improving, producers are working hard, and consumers walking into the store to buy eggs should not forget to pitch in too.

Further reading

• When animals have welfare, humans have good fortune! Treat chickens well, and only then will you have good eggs!
• Livestock experts remind you that you should eat good meat and good eggs