Some of the cheapest and widely available eggs tested by the Marketplace may be as nutritious as some of the most expensive eggs.  

The prices of these eggs at the grocery store range from US$2.75 per dozen to more than US$7.49 per dozen. There are many options between the two.

Generally, the cheapest tested by the Marketplace is traditional eggs, while organic eggs are the most expensive.

When it comes to organic eggs, not all eggs are tested the same. In the Marketplace test, organic eggs produced by small farms contained more nutrients than the big-brand organic eggs sold in Canada's largest private-label grocery store and the country's two largest egg brands. 

Marketplace randomly purchased two boxes of several types of eggs from 14 brands from grocery stores in the Greater Toronto Area. In total, the team sent 29 dozen eggs to an accredited food science laboratory to test cholesterol, protein, and omega-3 levels, as well as vitamins A, D, and E. 

Click here to learn more about our testing methodology.

The results were analyzed by Aja Gyimah, a registered dietitian who owns a private clinic in Toronto, PhD student Jennifer Lee in the L'Abbe laboratory at the University of Toronto, and poultry nutritionist and professor Doug Korver. University of Alberta.

In the first comparison, the team focused on traditional and organic eggs sold by Loblaws and Sobeys, Canada's largest grocery store, and some of the largest egg brands on the market, Burnbrae and LH Gray, the latter selling Grey Ridge and GoldEgg.  

For most of the nutrients tested, there is not much difference between the cheaper traditional eggs and the more expensive organic eggs. 

But the average price of traditional eggs is US$3.23 per dozen, and they are laid by hens in traditional cages. Hens in these environments produce approximately two-thirds of the eggs in Canada each year. 

The price of organic eggs is more than twice the average of US$6.98 per dozen. They are laid by hens living in free-range environments and can be taken outdoors. 

All organic eggs in the Marketplace test have a certified organic mark on the carton, which means they have been certified as organic eggs by a company recognized by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.   

On average, there is not much difference between cheaper traditional eggs and more expensive organic eggs sold by the same brand.

Watch | We tested 14 brands of eggs. This is what we found:

"I think this may actually eliminate a lot of confusion for our consumers," Gyimah said. "Now we know that traditional eggs can actually...keep themselves in shape." 

In fact, in some cases, the content of certain vitamins in traditional eggs is higher than that in organic eggs. Compared with Burnbrae's cheap Prestige eggs, this is the case with Burnbrae Naturegg organic eggs. Compared with Loblaw No Name eggs, this is the case with Loblaw President's Choice Organics eggs. When it comes to Sobeys Compliments eggs, traditional eggs contain more vitamin E than organic eggs, but LH Gray’s Organic Gold Egg contains more vitamin D than cheaper Grey Ridge Premium eggs. 

In all cases, the omega-3 content of organic eggs is indeed higher compared to traditional eggs. Each large organic egg contains an average of 0.13 grams of omega-3, while traditional eggs are about 0.05 grams. 

Omega-3 is an essential fatty acid that the body cannot produce on its own. The recommended daily intake of omega-3 is 1.1 grams for women and 1.6 grams for men.

Marketplace contacted every company, as well as Canadian Egg Farmers (EFC), which represents egg farmers across the country. 

When asked why the average nutritional difference between these cheaper and more expensive eggs is small, both EFC and Burnbrae stated that the nutritional content of eggs is based on the hen's diet. They said that the diets of all chicken coops are similar to the Marketplace. Types of laying hens tested. Sobeys and Loblaws did not directly respond to this question, and LH Gray did not respond to Marketplace emails.

Compared with the big brand organic eggs tested in the market, the eggs produced by the hens on the small organic farms are more nutritious. 

In this case, the team compared organic eggs sold by Burnbrae, GoldEgg, Sobeys, Loblaws, and Costco with eggs produced on small farms sold by Yorkshire Valley Farms and Bekings Poultry Farm. 

For these two brands, most barns have 500 hens, but there are two exceptions, with flocks of 4,000 and 6,000 laying hens, respectively. 

In Canada, an organic farm can have up to 10,000 laying hens per flock, but there can be more chickens in a barn, as long as they are separated and have separate outdoor spaces.

Small farm organic eggs contain an average of 3.25 mg of vitamin E per large egg, which is about 20% of the recommended daily value. The average vitamin E content of big-brand organic eggs is 2.16 mg. The average vitamin D content of organic eggs from small farms is 31.65 IU, which is about 5% of the recommended daily value. Among the major brands of organic eggs, the average value is 20.50 IU.

Compared with the eggs sold by big brands, the protein content of each large egg from small farms is about 1 gram higher, and the cholesterol content is slightly lower. 

Gerald Poechman, an organic farmer with 6,000 birds near Hanover, Ontario, said: “The chicks have more opportunities to go outdoors and find some food diversity there.” During the winter months, he also fed his hens with pea sprouts to supplement some of the nutrients they could not get from pasture grazing in the summer. 

According to Doug Korver, a poultry nutritionist at the University of Alberta, differences in egg nutrition are caused by many factors, such as the age and breed of the hens, and their diets. For example, higher levels of vitamin E mean that these hens may be fed a diet that contains more vitamin E. Although chickens can produce vitamin D through direct sunlight, in winter, the extra vitamin D may also be related to the hen's diet. 

Although the scope of laboratory testing commissioned by Marketplace is limited to random random checks of 14 different brands, some larger academic studies have reached similar conclusions. For example, a study published in the journal "Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems" in 2017 found that the eggs laid by hens contained higher levels of vitamin E and omega-3. The traditional diet of hens was obtained by foraging on pastures. add. 

Marketplace conducted a similar nutritional analysis of eggs in 2016 and found that organic eggs from small farms have more nutrients.

These small farm eggs are also the most expensive of all the eggs tested by the Marketplace, priced at about $8 per dozen.

Marketplace also compared three brands of artesian eggs with organic eggs from small farms. 

The tested egg brands are Burnbrae, GoldEgg and President's Choice. 

Free running means that hens can roam freely in the open concept barn, but unlike free-range organic laying hens, free running hens cannot enter the outdoors. 

The Marketplace nutrition test found that artesian eggs and small farm organic eggs are nutritionally similar, although the vitamin D of small farm organic eggs is about 34% higher on average. 

The free-running eggs in the Marketplace test cost about $6 per dozen, while the cost of organic eggs from small farms is about $8. 

All organic eggs tested by Marketplace are certified by CFIA-approved companies. Eggs with the Canadian organic logo come from farms that have obtained organic egg sales certification.

These farmers must go through the organic recertification process every year. These visits are in addition to the audits conducted by egg farmers who have passed the Canadian Animal Care Program, which also inspects all egg farms in the country every year. 

In order to sell organic eggs in Canada, farmers must keep their hens in a free-range environment, which means the hens can roam around in the open barn and go outdoors when the weather is right. 

Farmers who produce certified organic eggs must also feed hens only certified organic feed that does not contain pesticides or genetically modified organisms (GMO). 

Beth Simpson is an organic egg farmer near Holstein, Ontario. She and her husband Lloyd are part of the Organic Farmers Cooperative, which supplies eggs sold by Yorkshire Valley Farms. They own 500 hens.

According to Simpson, operating a small farm like hers incurs additional costs, which can lead to price increases, such as specialized feed, hand-picking eggs every morning, and looking after the hens while grazing outside in the summer. 

"I think the key is that our chickens went out," she said. "They are outside from ten o'clock until dark. We can't sleep because we can't let chickens in. They like it there."

She also said that her hens may spend more time outdoors during the summer months than hens in larger-scale activities. 

The Ontario Organic Council stated that consumers may choose to spend more on organic eggs for a reason. 

“The organic community believes that our food choices have more impact on our personal health than this,” communications manager Stuart Oke said via email. 

"The welfare of farm workers, farm animals, land, air, and water are closely related to the well-being of ourselves and our communities." 

Although there may be differences between the eggs tested by the Marketplace, Gyimah said that all eggs are a good source of protein, and people should choose eggs that they can afford.  

"Whether you are a baby or over 90 years old, you need protein. Therefore, using eggs to provide protein will be a very effective way to help you maintain or even build muscle mass," she said. 

For her, buying traditional eggs is still a viable option. 

"Just because you still get a fair amount of nutrition from it."

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