Welcome. In this course, you will learn how eggs get from the farm to your table. Check out the instructor guide in the material tab.
Start with the Eggs on the Farm section and learn how farmers care for their laying hens, including where they live, what they eat and the standards that egg farmers must follow to keep their hens healthy. Then follow the eggs from the farm to the grocery store to find out about egg grading and the different kinds of eggs you can buy in the Eggs at the Grocery Store section. Finally, learn why eggs are a healthy choice and cook along as we show you how to boil, fry, poach and scramble eggs in the Eggs in Your Kitchen section.
Course content & objectives
In this course, you will learn how eggs get from the farm to your table. There are three sections:
Eggs on the Farm – Egg farmer’s top priority is the care and well-being of their hens. Learn about:
- how egg farmers care for their laying hens
- where laying hens live
- what laying hens eat
- if hormones and antibiotics are used in raising laying hens
Eggs at the Grocery Store – What happens after the egg leaves the farm and before you buy it in the grocery store? In this section you will learn about:
- egg quality and grading
- what an egg breaking facility is
- different egg choices at the grocery store
Eggs in your Kitchen – Learn about egg nutrition, some basic egg cooking skills and try out a couple of easy egg recipes.
Course Delivery
Using the content on the Canadian Food Focus website, the material can be shared with students through a variety of methods, including:
- Lecture-style presentations by the instructor
- Student group presentations on each of the topic areas in the course
- Individual students selecting a specific topic to write about using information provided on the website and other resources
- Self-guided study with students completing quizzes at the end of each topic
- Team competitions at the end of each course to see which team gets the most quiz answers correct
Suggested Activities
- Invite an egg farmer to come and talk with your class about raising hens and how they take care of their birds. Topics could egg incubation and hatching chicks, bird nutrition, housing and how it has improved over the years, biosecurity and how farmers keep their birds healthy.
- Organize a field trip to an egg processing facility. What happens when the eggs arrive at the facility? What are the different steps in processing eggs? What types of equipment are used? How is egg quality maintained throughout? When and how are inferior or damaged eggs culled and what are they used for? Afterwards, have your students brainstorm a list of processed food products that contain eggs.
- Select one of the recipes in the “Learn to Make” portion of the lesson and prepare as a group. Reflect on the steps you took in working with eggs to 2) ensure they aren’t overcooked 2) combine them with other ingredients to enhance the flavour. Discuss what other dishes they have made at home with eggs. Eat and enjoy the finished product!