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Pasture-raised laying hens confer a number of benefits for the consumer looking to make an informed choice when shopping for eggs. Understanding the difference between pasture-raised and all the other options on the market can be difficult though. Enjoying eggs in your diet shouldn’t require extensive detective work, so let’s break down some of the key differences to watch out for.

Many of you looking for alternative egg suppliers are likely already familiar with the infamous battery cages. These have been the industry standard for decades – multiple birds cramped into a small cage & lacking the ability to stretch their wings, stand up properly or move around. Thankfully, the commercial egg industry has begun to move away from these systems. As of 2036 they will have completely eliminated their use in Canada.

The alternatives being utilized are many & vary from farm to farm in their approach to both humane handling & egg quality. It can feel overwhelming to stand in a grocery isle & try to make the right choice when buying eggs today. If you’ve been following along for a while now, you’ll know that my recommendation always goes back to buying direct from a producer. If not, you are relying on the marketing & branding of large corporate packers. This branding is designed to convince you to buy without providing any actual accountability for their claims.

Labelling Requirements for Organic

Organic is one exception; if an item is labelled organic, it needs to be certified by a third party verifying best management practices are being used. Farmers also need to abstain from using a lengthy list of banned substances in their production practices.

Organic isn’t a one-size-fits-all banner to rely on, however. What once began as a decentralized small scale production model based on trust & community has grown to such a degree that many organic farms have been consumed by the broader global food supply system. I believe this has occurred at the expense of the trust & community aspect. If you are buying eggs from a grocery store, you lack the ability to meet the producer or inquire about their practices. In a situation like this, relying on organic certification is a good compromise but it has its limits.

Today we’ll be focusing specifically on two of the most common claims you’ll see when it comes to eggs on the market today; pasture raised vs free range.

What’s in a label? Defining “Free Range” & “Pasture-Raised” Hens

The lack of legal labelling requirements is one of the greatest challenges facing a discerning consumer. The basic bare minimum requirement calls for nutritional content, ingredients & place of manufacture. Few products require specific labelling to meet any kind of national standard for humane handling claims.

“Free Range”

The term “free range” implies that birds are able to roam about during the day. Free range producers distinguish themselves apart from other commercial producers who may still utilize battery cages. The difficulty is that the benefit this infers to hens is limited & heavily dependent on other factors. More often than not, a free range chicken is still housed in a fixed facility designed for efficiency.

It may be a large open concept poultry barn with windows & temperature control. A barn like this still confines hens to an indoor space. Progressive producers might build a barn with automatic doors on the side to provide access to an outdoor run. Hens in a facility like this get fresh air & a chance to scratch in the dirt. The limitation from a system like this is the accumulation of nutrients on the surface of the ground, and a total depletion of any vegetation whatsoever within the fenced perimeter.

“Pasture-Raised”

On the other hand, “pasture-raised” typically sees hens divided into small cohorts of hens in a mobile shelter. These shelters are surrounded by a moveable fence for protection from land predators. Similar to the mobile chicken tractors used in broiler production, these pens allow chickens to be relocated to fresh ground daily. This ensures nutrients from manure are evenly distributed rather than accumulating in one spot. It also allows forage vegetation to recover from the stress of hens scratching and pecking in the dirt for bugs.

Living Conditions & Humane Handling Standards

In an ideal pasture raised environment laying hens have the following:

• Safe & secure overnight shelter which includes enough roosts for the number of birds
• nesting boxes with a roll away feature for laying eggs; again, enough boxes are provided for the number of hens
• Access to clean drinking water
• A ration of grain with a high enough protein content to support laying
• A calcium source; most commonly, oyster shell
• Access to fresh grass & the opportunity to hunt and peck through the grass for insects
• Where appropriate, hens require adequate winter shelter that allows for sunlight & room to move around. In our Alberta climate keeping hens in a summer mobile shelter would be cruel in January!

While there is no set guideline for what constitutes a pasture-raised hen standard of care, anyone claiming to raise birds on pasture should be able to demonstrate their own standards. This can be achieved through tours, photos & videos of the practices & standards being employed.

Free range can really mean almost anything when it comes to living conditions. It could be a small farm with a fixed coop & a covered run that is safe from predators, but doesn’t offer fresh grass to the hens. It could also be a commercial barn with no natural light that meets the minimum requirements for space per bird but does little else to consider the happiness of a hen.

Health Benefits – Is there a difference?

Baseline benefits

Regardless of where eggs come from some essentials are the same. Eggs contain an average of 6g of protein! The types of amino acids that make up that protein are one of the few naturally complete sources. This makes eggs are a well rounded protein unlike a vegetable-sourced protein. When sourcing proteins from legumes, they need to be combined with another source to make a complete amino acid profile. Eggs already have it all. The yolk, designed to nourish a growing chick, is also an important source of dietary vitamins & minerals. Eggs contain selenium, lutein, choline as well as antioxidants – important for maintaining cellular health as we age.

Unless a recipe specifically calls for yolks only or white only, such as merengue, use the whole egg. Ditch the egg white omelettes & use eggs they way they were meant to be!

The Infamous Cholesterol

The breakdown of different fats in a free range vs a pastured egg are where the stark differences really begin to make themselves known. The infamous cholesterol that eggs were maligned for is actually lower in a pastured egg for some reason. Its important to recall, though, that the medical community is still not entirely sure about the connection between dietary cholesterol & quantitative cholesterol levels in our bodies – so feel free to take this one with a grain of salt.

Omega 3 & Omega 6 Fatty Acids

The other stand out bit of data from egg research comes from the polyunsaturated fats in pastured eggs & most importantly, the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 fatty acids. The standard American diet tends to have too much of omega 6 and is deficient in omega 3. Consuming animal products from animals raised on pasture is a great way to boost omega 3 fatty acids. You might also have heard of conjugated linoleic acid, or ‘CLA’ for short – but chickens don’t produce this in the same quantities that ruminant herbivores do. Don’t be disappointed if you hear that there is no difference between eggs from pasture-raised hens or conventionally fed hens. Just know that you need to include pastured dairy products or red meat to reap those benefits.

Environmental Impacts of Pasture-Raised Hens

Raising hens on grass has additional benefits that producers loose out on when raising hens indoors or in permanent coops. Under these circumstances the manure & urine that hens produce rise quickly to a noxious level & become a liability issue. Volatile runoff in the form of concentrated nitrogen can pollute waterways & damage fragile ecosystems. They also produce strong smells that are off-putting to anyone working or living nearby.

Joel Salatin famously remarked that agriculture should be pleasing to the senses. Any deviation from that is a good indicator that something is out of balance.

In a pasture based management approach, the hen’s frequent movement from spot to spot prevents a build up of manure. Instead of being a liability, the manure becomes an asset to the overall health & vitality of the pasture system. The nutrients that are removed from the soil through grazing are replenished by the chickens.

What’s more, when pasture-raised hens or broilers are used in conjunction with ruminants like cows or sheep, the birds help control the pest population. Their natural inclination for hunting & pecking disrupts the life cycle of flies as well as parasites that move from cow to cow through their manure.

Alan Savory observed that in the wild Savanna of Zimbabwe birds naturally flocked to the migratory herds of water buffalo & elephants. Wherever one went – the other would follow in a naturally occurring symbiotic relationship. We can recreate this by allowing for the controlled & well timed use of domestic birds in concert with larger grazing ruminants to the benefit of all.

Keep it Simple – Buy Direct!

Buy eggs from a local farmer whenever possible if hen happiness, sourcing ‘good’ fats, or environmental restoration are priorities to you – Ask questions & plan to visit at least once to verify that the farmer is practicing the standards you expect. It’s not impossible to find a producer these days that actually aligns with your values, but you won’t likely find them in the grocery isle!

Alternatively, if you live in a chicken-friendly city, consider keeping a flock of your own pasture-raised hens & have 100% confidence in the quality of the eggs you collect everyday! You can read up on backyard flocks here if you’re interested!