Salmonella Outbreaks Spur Nationwide Egg Recall
Unsanitary, Inhumane Egg Factory Farms are the Norm
It may sound incredible, but many conventional egg operations contain as many as half a million chickens. Each cage will hold four or five birds, each with an area no larger than a letter-sized sheet of paper on which to “roam.” The truth is, many of these chickens can barely move around at all, let alone stretch their wings, forage for food or even spend time in the light of day.
Subsequently, these cage-raised chickens have to be given routine doses of antibiotics and other drugs, all of which have serious health implications for you the consumer.
It is a common misconception that salmonella only contaminates eggs from an external source. This is certainly a factor, as eggshells are porous and whatever the eggshell comes into contact with can cross over this semi-permeable membrane and end up in your eggs, including salmonella.
This is especially true when the eggshells are washed, which is required by most state laws as washing removes one of the barriers that normally protects the eggs from being contaminated.
But eggs can also become contaminated while they are being formed if the salmonella bacteria exist inside a chicken’s ovaries. Hens can become infected by eating rodent droppings or contaminated feed, and then pass the salmonella on to their eggs.
And now… the rest of the story. …..
Harold
