Egg safety question

[Anonymous]

I purchased a dozen Horizon organic brown eggs over the weekend and didn't realize until this morning that they had been sitting in the bottom of a shopping bag in the kitchen. The box says they must be refrigerated, but why? When I get eggs from friends' chickens, I just put them on the counter and use them over the course of several days.

Should I toss the dozen I just bought or are they safe to use?

[Anonymous]

The eggs are safe to use. Don't worry. They should be refrigerated because they've been washed. When they come out of the chicken they have a nice invisible coating on the egg that preserves them w/out refrigeration. Commercial eggs have been washed and must be refrigerated. But a day or 2 in the bottom of a bag - in this weather- won't hurt. You will know immediately upon cracking them open whether they have gone bad.

[Anonymous]

My mom swears that they left their eggs on the counter wgen she was a kid. I'd eat them.

[Anonymous]

Your mom's family eggs must not have been commercially processed. 09:23 is right.
If you buy them from the farmer, and use them reasonably soon, on the counter is fine.

[Anonymous]

In Europe they dont even refrigerate eggs in the grocery store!

[Anonymous]

It's probably ok, but I've had salmonella poisoning from an egg....and honestly, it could kill some one. I'd buy new eggs.

[Anonymous]

I grew up on a farm, so obviously the eggs we ate weren't commercially prepared, but we never refrigerated them. They were always in a bowl on the counter. And I remember when we lived in Germany, the eggs in the grocery store weren't even in the refrigerated section.

I'm like you.... a little paranoid about food safety, so I would probably toss them. But honestly, the are probably fine.

[Anonymous]

I imagine they are probably fine--but do you know how to do the water test? If they float in a bowl of water, they are suspect.

Also, crack them open individually into a bowl before you use them. If they are bad, they will smell.

[Anonymous]

Yes, if an egg is bad you will know right away.

[Anonymous]

I'm the pp that had salmonella. I know it was from an egg I had, and it didn't seem bad. Not trying to scare you! Just be careful if you are feeding children or older peeps.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

You can't smell salmonella. I would toss them.

[Anonymous]

The reason eggs from a farm or in foreign countries, or long ago (when our parents were young) are/were safe without refrigeration is because eggs have a coating called a "bloom" on them when they are laid. It prevents bacteria from getting into the egg and multiplying.

In most countries, this bloom is left intact and it makes the eggs safe without refrigeration. Also, your friends who give you eggs don't wash off the bloom (I'm assuming) so they are safe without refrigeration, too.

However, in the U.S., commercial eggs are washed (to remove dirt and chicken poo) and this removes the bloom. This is why American eggs from the grocery store need to be refrigerated.

I am a person who can tolerate a lot in her eggs -- I eat raw eggs all the time -- so I might be ok with eating those eggs if they are in something where they'll be cooked 100% (like a baked dish or soup) but not where they'd be undercooked (like an over-easy egg).