Add value to your eggs and beat lockdown price slump

Many farmers are stuck with eggs because of low demand. Photo Edgar R Batte

Egg prices have hit probably the lowest price drop in recent years since their prices went up after the civil war that gave South Sudan independence.

A tray of small sized eggs were last week selling at about Shs6000 while the bigger size went for Shs7,500. Retail prices fell to as low as Shs250 in most areas.

According to Aga Ssekalala, the Executive Director, Ugachick, about 60 per cent of the eggs produced in Uganda are exported to Kenya. The other markets in South Sudan, Tanzania and Rwanda are also frozen by the Covid-19 pandemic.

This price drop is partly due to the short lifespan of eggs estimated at just over four weeks under normal storage. With the end of Covid-19 not in sight, experts have advised on making the best of the eggs.

Preservation
The shell of an egg normally carries a wide range of microorganisms on its surface which are mostly responsible for spoiling eggs.
According to the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) guidelines, edible eggs must observe high hygienic conditions.

The UNBS recommends several methods of preserving eggs including cold storage in near freezing temperature of 0° C with a relative humidity of 85-90 per cent. These conditions can enable eggs last up to five or eight months.

“Intact eggs may be held at the lowest possible temperature that will avoid freezing and bursting of the shells,” the Uganda Standards Catalogue, states.

Preservation in 10°C – 12°C can enable storage for a short period of two to three months. Another recommendation is to preserve eggs by wrapping in polyethylene, cellophane, polyvinylidene and other transparent materials. These however, must be sufficiently strong.

Eggs can also be preserved by a process called dry packing where they are kept in earthen pots with clean dry packing material and the pot is buried in wet sand.

The eggs can also be immersed in liquids such as lime and sodium chloride to prevent microorganisms. This prevents the escape of moisture from the egg.
Thermostabilisation, also

known as defertilisation which kills embryos only keeps eggs edible for three to four weeks.

Preservation
According to Charles Ssekatawa, a veterinary doctor who runs an online poultry resource centre on social media, quality can be enhanced by a few good practices which can increase the shelf life of eggs too. He says that sorting of eggs according to size should be done with damaged eggs sold immediately or consumed by the family
members. He says that beddings in the laying boxes should be changed regularly preferable every two to three weeks to avoid contamination of eggs with bacteria. Eggs should also be kept clean while pallets made with bricks and timber can be used to avoid putting the trays directly on the floor.

Stacking is also crucial with double yolk eggs kept with the big ones kept on top. “But stacking 15 or more trays can lead to damages and rotting,” Ssekatawa says. “When keeping eggs,” he adds, “leave a space every after a stack of trays so that there can be proper air flow through the egg trays.”

For eggs that could be dirty, Ssekatawa recommends using sand paper or steel wire to gently clean them. “Eggs must never be put in water to be cleaned,” he explains.

He adds that egg trays near the wall or on the floor tend to attract moisture which leads to moulding.
“So, you need to leave a gap between the wall or the floor and the egg trays. On a sunny day, eggs on the wall of the store get warmer, which can also reduce their shelf life,” he says.
Additionally, the UNBS recommends cleaning storage rooms regularly with odourless detergents or sanitisers.
The best storage involves the large end of the egg facing up to help the yolk remain centered.

Home baking opportunity
Thanks to the coronavirus lockdowns, many families are increasingly getting involved in home baking.
Edmond Ssendege, a baking enthusiast who runs a home-based bakery says that families can use the excess eggs to bake their pastries at home.
“I find this a big opportunity instead of people going to supermarkets where they may even find expired bread and other baked stuff,” he says.
Eggs are a good source of high quality protein. More than half the protein of an egg is found in the albumen along with vitamin B2 and lower amounts of fat and cholesterol than the yolk.
Ssendege explains too that the low prices can be exhausted by feeding children on the fresh eggs before prices rise again.

Go online
Several farms are taking their produce to social media to find buyers.
Actually, most of them are making deliveries for sizeable requests by accepting mobile money payments.
James Mugerwa, an extension worker explains that finding the market can be gruesome but since many people are now looking for consumables online with limited movements, using social media contacts can be a useful tactic in selling the eggs instead of throwing them away.
“The market can still be there by telling your online friends what you have got to offer,” Mugerwa says.

Value addition
Adding value to eggs is a good option for a farmer who wants to beat the low prices. Once processed, eggs are easier to preserve, transport, store and sell.
The value added products include scrambled eggs, sandwich fillings, egg rolls and hard-boiled eggs. To process the eggs, one can boil, dip in mineral oil, spray, pasteurise, dehydrate (removal of water ration from the egg) or freeze.

Pasteurisation, however, remains the most reliable technology as the eggs are treated at 74°C to guarantee a shelf-life of up to 10 weeks under frozen conditions and the quality is maintained.

Pasteurised products extracted from eggs include liquid whole eggs, dried whole, liquid yolk and dried yolk. In the food industry, the egg-sourced products are used as ingredients for different food products.

Dried whole and dried white eggs are used in preparing meat products such as bacon, ham and sausage, primarily from pork.

Dried white and dried crystal white eggs are used in confectionary. The yolk is used by chefs for sauces and soups.

The ability to process fresh eggs into egg powder will reduce post-harvest losses and ensure stable market when the shelled eggs are in less demand.

Products
Eggs can indeed be value added.
Some of the value added products include egg powder, low cholesterol yolkless eggs (egg albumen) and shell-less eggs.
Dried white and dried crystal white eggs are used in confectionary. The yolk is used by chefs for sauces and soups.
The ability to process fresh eggs into egg powder will reduce post-harvest losses and ensure stable market when the shelled eggs are in less demand.