Dodgy eggs sold throughout Victoria

A growing number of egg sellers have no idea about food safety requirements designed to protect consumers. Tens of thousands (or perhaps hundreds of thousands) of eggs are sold each week by people who meet no regulations or standards. In Victoria, the Department of Agriculture has clear requirements for egg producers, including the preparation of a Food Safety Management Statement for each property.But many sellers ignore the requirements. The Departments says:”It is preferable that eggs with minor marks are dry cleaned rather than washed”. But if eggs are washed, there should be good temperature control and an approved sanitizer must be used. But the requirements are often ignored as there is currently no inspection process to verify compliance with standards following the State Government decision to remove registration and inspection requirements by Shire Councils.

Salmonella contamination caught some producers by surprise

The recent outbreak of salmonella enteritidis on a farm in Victoria, caught egg producers by surprise. This particular version of the food poisoning bacteria has not been endemic in Australia - until now. Other forms of salmonella contamination are a result of poor egg handling procedures.There are several ways that hens in laying flocks can be infected with Salmonella enteritidis. There is often a low level of infection at the start of the laying period which indicates that contamination from breeding stock is minor. It is not yet known how this contamination happened but laying flocks seem to become infected mainly from the farm environment including not properly cleaned and disinfected poultry houses and infected vermin present on the farm.Major egg producers operate as a grading floor and purchase eggs from many sources throughout Australia, so it can be hard to trace the origin of any contamination. Australian Eggs, the body which represents egg producers in the country is desperately trying to hose down food safety issues after the recent salmonella enteritidis scare. Managing Director Rowan McMonnies said, “We will continue to work with authorities to Avoid SE becoming endemic in Australia and protect our longstanding reputation as a producer of clean safe eggs.” The industry body is scrambling to resurrect the reputation of farmers after the damage caused by a string of intensive producers who labeled their eggs as free range and politicians protected them by approving an intensive 'free range' definition.

Small is beautiful

When large numbers of animals are farmed intensively on industrial units to maximise profits, problems are inevitable. Disease control and food safety are prime issues as is environmental sustainability. Since the Second World War, agricultural practices have gone through massive changes, in mechanisation, chemical use and large-scale intensive farming.

As a result of increasing the density of domestic farm animals, reported farm pollution incidents have sky-rocketed. In some areas farm waste is a major problem. Some countries report that about half of all serious water pollution incidents are caused by manure run-off from farms. Poultry, cows and pigs are the farm animals most responsible for the pollution. Livestock production occupies 70% of all land used for agriculture and 30% of the planet’s land surface. It is responsible for 18% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions as measured in CO2 equivalents. It also generates 64% of the ammonia, which contributes to acid rain and acidification of ecosystems.

A large quantity of animal waste is generated by concentrated animal feeding operations and disposal of the waste has been a major problem. The industrialised farms collect the animal waste and mix it with water to form slurry. To be spread on paddocks as fertiliser. If the soil or plants are unable to absorb the nutrients the run-off gets into water systems. On Intensive free range farms running 10,000 hens per hectare, the huge volume of manure on paddocks poses an ecological risk to water courses because of the high nutrient load. Farm waste has led to the growth of toxic algae in waterways (algal blooms), the development of parasitic infections on frogs, and other species. This is why all farms should follow an Environmental Management plan and why low stocking densities should be maintained.Small-scale diversified farming is better than monocultures and intensive farming. But there is some way to go before the egg industry and agriculture as a whole is environmentally sustainable.All this led to the reason for us to start developing webinars to encourage people to set up free range egg farms and wed have a crowd funding campaign to ensure it is a top quality offering. https://www.gofundme.com/2tar52c

There is no need for eggs to be washed - even though it is common practice

It's important for all egg farmers – large and small - to produce eggs that present the lowest health risks for consumers. Production of visibly clean eggs, free from dirt and faecal contamination, is the primary concern in the supply of table eggs and it's not hard as long as the farm has good flock management practices.For the shelf life of an egg and from a food safety perspective, it is important to lower the level of bacterial contamination on eggs. If there is an increase in the number of bacteria present on the egg shell surface, the chances rise of eggshell penetration and contamination of the egg internally. Washing and sanitising are common practices on some farms but studies on the quality of stored eggs has frequently shown that washing increases the probability of spoilage.The cleaning of eggs by washing has been widely condemned.

The egg emerges from the cloaca moist and at a temperature of 41°C and organic matter adheres to the moist shell and as it cools bacteria can be drawn into the pores of the shell (Sexton, 2014). The outermost layer of the shell is the cuticle. This is a non-calcified proteinacious layer added to the shell just before it leaves the uterus. The cuticle is responsible for the smooth, glossy appearance of a freshly laid egg and the cuticle protects the egg from invasion with microorganisms. On the surface of the cuticle are pores that extend through the calcified layer to the egg membrane. These pores are responsible for the exchange of gases (oxygen into the egg and CO2 out) and loss of water vapour from the egg interior. A typical hen’s egg contains 6,500 pores, with the greatest concentration of pores at the blunt end of the shell over the air cell. The shell is not considered to be a significant obstacle to bacterial penetration although the underlying shell membranes are a more effective barrier . It is a vulnerable package and may crack. Egg shell integrity declines with increasing bird age.

At oviposition, 90% of eggs are germ free. The eggshell can be contaminated by any surface with which the egg comes in contact. Faeces, water, caging material, nesting material, insects, hands, broken eggs, dust on the egg belt, blood and soil are the most common sources of eggshell contamination Eggs become contaminated internally by two primary means, transovarian or trans-shell contamination

• Freshly laid eggs may be contaminated through the oviduct and the presence of certain bacterial species can indicative of an infected bird. This is called vertical transmission, i.e., transovarian transmission of Salmonella spp., especially S. Enteritidis, which is dependent upon the presence of infected ovaries and the migration of bacteria across the vitelline membrane into the substance of the yolk during egg formation. Vertical transmission occurs as a result of Salmonella infection of the reproductive organs i.e. ovaries or oviduct and the egg yolk membrane or albumen surrounding is directly contaminated. Salmonella enteritidis is not endemic in Australian laying flocks.
• Horizontal transmission, which can occur both before and after shell formation. Infection of the inner egg can occur from the moment of ovulation onwards until consumption. Trans-shell contamination involves the initial contamination of the egg surface, followed by the subsequent penetration by the microorganisms into the albumen or in some cases directly into the yolk. Trans-shell movement of bacteria can occur under the appropriate conditions of temperature, humidity etc in spite of the number of defence mechanisms to limit the effects of such an event

Washing of eggs is rarely applied within the European Union, except by a few packers in Sweden and one in the Netherlands however it is common in the USA, Japan and here inAustralia. The practice of washing of eggs in Europe has been developed to clean dirty eggs (grade B) however it seems that in some countries where washing is practised it is seen as a means of improving microbial quality and of reducing the risks of infection of the internal egg.

. In Australia the vast majority of eggs are washed prior to packing to remove dirt and faecal material and in an effort to reduce the microbial contamination of the egg shell. However, if the washing process is not carefully controlled, it c an actually increaxse the level of contamination.

The EU is concerned about egg washing and the possibility of deterioration of the cuticle, which protects the egg against dehydration and offers a natural barrier to common microorganisms, and occasional pathogenic microorganisms, present in the flora that colonise the surface of the egg. There is also concern in the EU and in Australia that washing is used to cover up poor husbandry and hygiene standards on farms and in packing centres.

Poultry health and food safety need careful management

Issues surrounding food safety on egg farms are often ignored. It seems that the only time there is any focus is after an outbreak of disease or food poisoning traced back to eggs.

There are clearly many factors involved in maintaining poultry health and producing great, clean food. Cleanliness is a great starting point – clean sheds, clean nest boxes, wholesome feed and and clean water. Adequate cleaning procedures are vital as is controlling dust, vermin and ensuring good ventilation in sheds. Stocking densities are a substantial issue as each hen produces about half a cubic metre of manure a year, faecal contamination is likely to be a major salmonella risk factor in high density sheds. Do the maths, if you have 6000 hens in a shed, that's 1500 cubic metres of manure in the shed each year assuming the hens are only in the shed for 12 hours a day. The build up of manure provides a top host site for all sorts of nasties which can affect the health of hens and cause gastro problems with contaminated eggs. With 1000 hens per shed, that's still 250 cubic metres of manure a year. That's one of the many reasons we run flock sizes of 200 -300. Poultry health and egg are under greater threat as flock numbers rise. Large flock sizes and significant numbers of laying hens in sheds, often means that there is likely to be a high level of floor eggs - which increases the probability of contamination. That appears to have been the cause of the most recent salmonella event in Victoria.

But it's not just the threat of salmonella contamination – the only outbreaks of avian influenza in Australia have been on intensive poultry facilities.
The establishment of intensive production systems masquerading as 'free range' presents a great risk factor for the industry. Flock size and shed densities are vital issues.

Here's some detailed info:

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1462-2920.2001.00213.x/full

Legislation for egg stamping and food safety issues are a washout

The new regulations for egg farmers look like they are a dismal failure as they were intended to help protect consumers and provide traceability of all eggs back to the farm on which they were produced. The industry broadly supported the proposal drawn by by FSANZ (Food Safety Australia and New Zealand, but the legislation was writen separately in each state. Here in Victoria, some people who sell eggs have not bothered to register with the Department of Environment and Primary Industries and they are not stamping the eggs they produce with a farm identification number. They claim there is a loophole in the regulations which came into effect in November. They say that as they have 50 chooks or less, they don't need to register and are not required to stamp their eggs or comply with food safety standards.
It's just another example of bureaucratic stupidity. In the interests of the health of the community and traceability, the new regulations should apply to everyone who sells eggs. They should either apply to all egg producers, or none of us. It is simply not fair on those in the industry who meet the costs of complying with regulations when some sellers at markets or retail stores are allowed to flout them. It's not a small thing. While individual backyarders might only sell 20 dozen or so each week,  Throughout Australia, at least 100,000 dozen eggs each year are produced in  backyard operations and sold to unsuspecting consumers at markets or retail outlets. These producers have no understanding of the need for temperature control or other food safety requirements. Often they use secondhand cartons and do not meet labelling standards.
Another issue with egg stamping is that the legislation does not ensure that eggs are stamped on-farm. The stamping can be carried on a grading floor - which means that almost any stamp can be put on the eggs if they are sent to a grading floor for packing. This make a mockery of traceability claims.

Salmonella problem on Victorian egg farm

More than 200 people became ill after eating at restaurants supplied by an Ararat egg farm. Details are at http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-03/western-victoria-eggs-linked-to-salmonella-outbreak/5295078/?site=ballarat

Problems with Salmonella are not common in Australia as most commercial farms follow strict food safety procedures.

We are always amazed at the things we see people getting away with at markets - even Farmers' Markets which claim to only have accredited stallholders .

Here's a brief run-down about Salmonella and how good operators can easily avoid the problem.

Salmonella is a bacteria that can be found on many farms. Chickens carry the bacteria in their bodies, and pass Salmonella into the yolk and white while eggs are being formed in the ovaries. Bacteria may be deposited on the eggshell when the egg is laid and then in the right conditions, the bacteria can pass through the shell pores into the egg itself.

Despite a common belief, cracked eggs are not generally responsible for Salmonella problems. An intact shell does not guarantee safe eggs. The key is good on-farm hygiene practices with rodent control, clean nest boxes, clean grading and packing facilities and adequate cool storage. Eggs should be clean when they are laid and regular collection and good handling practices prevent the spread of bacteria.

Any part of the egg can harbour bacteria, and both whites and yolks have been implicated in food borne illness. However, the yolk is the most common source.

Chickens can be infected with salmonella bacteria from their environment, which is easily contaminated by rodents, birds and flies. These carriers take the bacteria to all types of egg farms whether they're cage, organic or free-range. The totally controlled environment of cage systems probably makes the problem less likely there as long as feed, water storage and egg handling facilities are up to scratch.

Once the bacteria get inside the chickens, the micro organisms thrive under ideal temperature and conditions.

When the eggs have been laid, multiplication happens fast if the eggs aren't cooled quickly. And if there's a lapse in cleaning practices or an undetected outbreak among the chickens, the percentage of affected eggs can increase rapidly.

Salmonella bacteria can double every 20 minutes under ideal conditions. In an hour at room temperature, two bacteria could become 32. At two hours, there may be 1,000 organisms. At eight hours, there can be millions in one egg.

One of the big problems for consumers at markets is that eggs are often transported halfway across the State and are not kept in temperature controlled conditions. The eggs may leave the farm on Thursday or Friday for deliveries in Melbourne and some may not be sold until a Sunday market.

If those eggs are well cooked, they should present no problem – but if they are eaten raw or in an undercooked form, gastroenteritis is often the result.

According to press reports, the problems with the latest contamination issue has been a combination of poor egg handling procedures and the number of eggs laid on the floor of the sheds rather than in nest boxes. The company's answer appears to be to import an egg washing machine to wash all eggs produced on the farm.

This outbreak demonstrates why industry accreditation programs are a fiasco.

Here's the latest from Green Eggs as published:

Products from a Great Western egg farm, Green Eggs, are back in the market place following a link with a salmonella outbreak.

The Victorian Health Department linked an outbreak of gastro enteritis due to salmonella at two restaurants to raw-egg foods made from Green Eggs products.

 

The Department of Environment and Primary Industries restricted the sale of eggs from the Great Western farm until additional cleaning and hygiene measures were in place to improve food safety. Those measures are now in place.

Owner Alan Green said the small business was devastated by the link to their product.

 

Mr Green said five employees had lost jobs this week because of changes made to the processing and packaging department.

He said Green Eggs were awaiting the delivery of an online washer from overseas to assist quality control.

 

"Eggs are now going out - they are being washed in Melbourne and are back in the market place," he said.

 

"Eggs already in the market place are fine but the public's safety is our number one priority."

Chief health officer Dr Rosemary Lester said people who had bought Green Eggs products from their supermarket and still had eggs in their fridge should only use them for cooked dishes and foods.

 

Dr Lester said thoroughly cooking eggs rendered them safe from contaminants such as salmonella.

Green Eggs supplies a range of restaurants, cafes and other eateries, farmers' markets and several supermarkets across Victoria, including A Bottle of Milk restaurant in Torquay, where 220 people ate before coming down with gastroenteritis in February.

 

Farm inspection OK for food safety

The annual inspection of our food safety and farm management procedures was conducted today and everything was fine.
The HACCP-based Food Safety Program which we use, plus our extensive record keeping ensures that we comply with all food safety requirements.
We meet the food safety standards of the Health Department and the requirements of the Department of Environment and Primary Industries.
It seems that we are the first egg farm in the region to implement egg stamping to provide farm traceability. All farms are required to comply with stamping regulations by November this year.

Egg printing options

There are so many egg printing/stamping options around that it's all a bit of a blur trying to work out the most effective system for our farm.
We have ordered a single egg stamper which will be used over the next few months while we continue the search for a laser or inkjet printer which we can couple with our elderly grading machine.
It will be interesting to get the reactions of our customers at Farmers' Markets when they first see printing on our eggs.
The ink used is supposedly food grade.
It's all part of national food safety regulations and everyone selling eggs in Victoria is required to comply by November this year. (I almost foolishly said they must comply - but of course they won't). Currently there are many egg sellers who ignore regulations. They are not registered with their Council, or with DEPI and have have no idea about food safety issues. Why are genuine producers forced to meet the cost of compliance when so many backyarders flout the system?
They sell their dodgy eggs on the roadside or at markets (even those which claim to be accredited Farmers' Markets)  every week and no-one does anything about it. I will raise this issue again with our local environmental health officer at our next inspection!

Food Safety and Quality Assurance program for all free range egg farms in Australia

 

There is massive demand amongst free range egg farmers for help with preparing the documentation needed to comply with the increasing complexity of State and Federal regulations. Because there now is no active association representing the free range industry here in Victoria, we have been getting emails and phone calls from operators of free range farms asking how they can set up food safety and quality assurance programs on their farms.
We also get quite a few requests from interstate.
The simplest way, as we always tell them, is to adapt a generic program which has already been developed.
We have a program on the Freeranger website which is readily available on the Freeranger Club page and full info is available on the Food Safety page of our site. If anyone needs help adapting the program, please contact an egg industry consultant - or we can help. All you have to do is ask.
http://www.freeranger.com.au/food-safety.html
A heap of information is also available on the DEPI website and every registered egg producer has received a copy of the booklet on food safety. The document includes information to assist in meeting the requirements of the standard and manage the food safety hazards associated with egg production.

Producers must comply with the obligations set out in the standard if they have 50 birds or more. If you don't have a recognised QA program in place, you are required to follow a food safety management statement.The food safety management statement is evidence that you have appropriate systems in place and the statement must be produced if you are asked to do so.

A food safety management statement can be a recognised quality assurance program or a generic food safety management statement approved by the Secretary of the DEPI.

Tasmania releases new draft egg safety regulations

The Tasmanian Government today released draft egg regulations for public comment. They appear to  be a very sensible match of consumer protection measures while limiting the impact on backyarders.

The draft regulations (Primary Produce (Egg) Safety Regulations 2013) are designed to enable compliance with a national food safety standard that must be applied by all States and Territories.

Mr Klumpp, General Manager Biosecurity and Product Integrity with the Department of Primary Industries, said a new egg standard in the national Food Standards Code, developed by Food Standards Australia New Zealand, had a requirement for egg stamping to be introduced in all States and Territories as part of improving food safety standards in the egg production industry.

“Acknowledging this is a national requirement that Tasmania must comply with, the draft regulations for our State have been developed to take on concerns and issues from Tasmania’s large and small egg producers,” Mr Klumpp said.

“For example, although stamping of eggs to ensure traceability of sold products is required, we have identified a range of measures to enable compliance whilst minimising impacts on our smaller egg producers.”

Mr Klumpp said the measures Tasmania has identified to address concerns raised by some egg producers included:

· Producers who had fewer than 20 egg producing birds and did not sell eggs would not be required to stamp their product at all.

· Producers with fewer than 20 egg producing birds and intend selling their product would be provided with a free hand held stamp by the Department when they registered their details. This would enable eggs to simply be hand stamped to ensure traceability requirements are met. Producers in this category must still comply with the Food Standards Code, however, do not need to be accredited by DPIPWE.

· Producers with more than 20 egg producing birds will be required to be accredited by DPIPWE and have an audited and approved food safety program in place. However, this has been a requirement in Tasmania since commencement of the Egg Industry Act 2002. All eggs produced in this category are also required to be stamped.

“This national egg standard was developed in response to the level of egg-related illnesses occurring in Australia each year – estimated at more than 12,000 cases and costing $44 million.

“Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) determined that having commercial eggs stamped with the producers unique identifying mark would enable them to be quickly traced in the case of food safety problems.

“FSANZ ascertained that in the event of egg-related foodborne illness, stamped eggs could be more easily traced to the producer, enabling the cause of any contamination to be addressed quickly, preventing further potentially contaminated eggs entering the market and averting wide product recalls.”

Mr Klump said written submissions on the draft regulations could be made until 10 January 2014.

Tassie Farmers & Graziers reckon that exemptions for backyard egg sellers are unfair

With food health and hygiene, it's not appropriate to have one law for some and another law for others, according to the Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association.
"We're told the recent changes to egg labeling regulations reflect an assessed risk of food contamination from poor handling and other factors. If this is a real health risk, you cannot exempt backyard and small producers from being responsible for what they sell," Association chief executive Jan Davis said.
Ms Davis was commenting on a move by the Tasmanian Greens to exempt people with fewer than 50 hens from new regulations that come into force there on 26 November 2013.
These regulations will require any eggs sold in Tasmania to be stamped with identifying information.
"The rationale is that, if there is a problem, we have to be able to isolate the producer responsible," Ms Davis said.
"If you exempt a large segment of the industry that supplies eggs, even if it is a backyard industry, you destroy the integrity of the risk assessment system. Of particular concern is that, in many cases, this smaller segment is actually the greatest source of potential risk.
"Therefore it has to be all in or none in. Otherwise it's a clear case of discrimination.
"This is the sort of community division that arises when governments do not do their homework and do not consult with the appropriate people involved in the industry before they decide to act. I have already said that these regulations are typical of the nanny state approach common to governments in Australia.
"If these regulations are to be introduced, they must be imposed on all those who supply the market, not just the bigger players. A salmonella outbreak is not excusable simply because it derives from a small producer.
"If there is a problem with the administration of the regulations or the cost to smaller producers, then let's deal with that as a separate issue.
"What's good for the goose has to be good for the gander."
At Freeranger Eggs, we agree with those sentiments. If backyard producers squeal at the imaginary cost of stamping eggs, they can talk to the Government. In NSW the Government there undertook to provide hand held stampers to small producers.

Tassie egg rules back-down

It looks like Tasmania's Labor Government will back down on egg laws due to come into force later this month. There was a big public backlash from backyarders and some shopkeepers who didn't like the idea of stamping eggs and having to follow food safety procedures.
Wouldn't have anything to do with the state election looming next March - which the Libs are expected to win???
Details in the Hobart Mercury:
http://www.themercury.com.au/lifestyle/back-flip-on-egg-ban/story-fnj64o9j-1226753815534

Egg stamping and Food Safety Regulations

The recent public fuss in Tasmania about compliance with national standards for egg production is really quite mindless.

There has been the CWA shrieking that it sells 100 dozen eggs a week at one of its stores (using second hand cartons) and why shouldn't it be allowed to keep doing this. Backyarders who sell surplus eggs from their homes or on roadside stalls say they shouldn't be forced to comply with food safety and identification regulations.

What it means of course is that they don't want to comply with the same food safety conditions that all genuine egg farmers are required to meet. How can they think that is fair?

Jan Davis the CEO of the Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association has no problem with enforcing reasonable food safety standards – for eggs or for anything else. She remains to be convinced that stamping eggs, as is required under the new national standard, is a reasonable response to the level of risk to consumers from contaminated eggs. “But” as she says “that is the national standard, so we have to comply”.

The clamour from some small producers and people supplying market stalls to be exempt from these new regulations is not logical. If the health risks posed by potentially contaminated eggs are such that regulation is deemed to be necessary; then that risk is the same for all eggs, and the same regulations should apply to all egg producers. If some eggs can be exempt, then the regulations are really not necessary for any eggs.

Egg substitution is a significant problem and the stamping of eggs with a farm identification code will help to eliminate that. Many of the eggs sold at markets and roadside stalls are not the produce of the person selling them. They can be bought from dubious sources and passed-off as 'free range'.

Egg producers need a level playing field – otherwise the competition is unfair. Why should some egg sellers be allowed to get away with not following food safety procedures, using second hand cartons, not labelling their cartons and not stamping their eggs to show the origin of the product?

If a shop selling 100 dozen eggs a week is exempt from these regulations, (even if it is a CWA shop) there is no point in introducing the standards at all.

People with chooks who want to give away surplus eggs to neighbours and friends don't need to comply with the standards - but everyone who sells eggs should be required to follow the same processes and procedures as the rest of us.

The stamping of eggs need not involve significant costs. For small producers, hand stampers are readily available. 

Vic Government releases food safety requirements for egg farmers

Many egg producers thumb their noses at food safety issues because they don't understand (or don't care) about the implications for consumers or for their businesses.

 

At last, here in Victoria the Government has sent out its requirements for meeting the new national standards for egg production which came into effect on November 26 last year. It gives producers until November 26 2014 to comply with egg stamping regulations!
 

Which means that for more than another year, many Victorian consumers will continue to have no idea where the eggs they buy actually originate. There have been many examples of substitution, with eggs brought in from other farms using different production systems - some of them interstate. These eggs are packed and marketed as being produced on a particular farm, to specific standards.
 

At least when stamping each egg with a unique farm identification code, consumers may be able to tell who is cheating. But until November next year the con merchants will have a ball.

 

Once the Department of Primary Industries has issued us with a code to put on our eggs, we intend to buy the necessary equipment and start stamping Freeranger Eggs even though we don't have to for almost 18 months.

 

It makes sense to us that consumers should be able to tell the source of the eggs they buy.

 

At Freeranger Eggs we've had a fully operation HACCP-based Quality Assurance and Food Safety Program in place for several years, so we don't have to do anything more apart from stamping the eggs. 

 

One dumb thing in the new regulations is that eggs can be stamped on the farm where they are laid - or at the grading floor. (This means that smart operators of the grading floor can put on any identifier they like. What a loophole!)

 

Vic Government ignores food safety

We had our food safety inspection by our local council (Bass Coast Shire) Health Officer yesterday and all was well. Our grading room, cool room, delivery and egg handling procedures were all demonstrably OK.

But I couldn't help myself. I referred to the recent post I put up here and how outraged I felt that in Victoria ALL egg sellers are not legally required to record the temperatures at which their eggs are stored.

We do it as a matter of course – we have a detailed Food Safety Programme which is a key part of our operation. Many farms in Victoria don't bother with records which show their temperature control procedures or their egg cleaning methods (and if eggs are dirty there is a farm management problem).

I received an email from Heather Haines, Manager, Evidence Program of FoodSafety Victoria who said “The new Primary Production and Processing standard does not, in fact, specify that eggs should be transported and stored at cool temperatures Although temperature control is not specified in the standard, cool transport and storage of eggs (along with the control of humidity) are recommended in several industry codes of practice and state government, for the reasons you discuss".

I was gobsmacked! It seems that all those clowns who are transporting eggs for many hours or days in unrefrigerated vans are not breaking any laws. As temperature control “is not specified” they can ignore it – and they do. There are heaps of examples of eggs being transported at uncontrolled temperatures for many hours to markets in Melbourne and other places. It maybe be OK in cool conditions – but I am disgusted that the Victorian Government allows it to happen when temperatures higher than specified levels encourage the growth of bacteria and pathogens. Why wait for the problem to kill people!!

Food safety issues on egg farms

 

Ideally, Storage temperatures
should be logged twice a day

In the US, authorities are beginning to enforce food safety requirements on egg farms. Here in Australia, we have a few regulations, but mostly just voluntary standards. Enforcement generally depends on individual  accreditation programs or on local government environmental heath officers - and that varies greatly from Shire to Shire.
One of the problem areas identified in the US was the recording of cool room temperatures. That is probably the biggest single issue here.

Many farms don't bother to log temperatures (some don't even have cool rooms) and some transport eggs for days in unrefrigerated vehicles.

The risks to health can be significant when eggs are stored and transported incorrectly and it seems weird that temperature control is not a mandatory requirement.

Here's an article about some of the US findings on non-compliance with regulations.
http://www.wattagnet.com/156696.html

Illegal eggs sold at markets

I had a reasonable day selling our free range eggs at the Kongwak market in South Gippsland today, but it was interesting that at least three other stalls were selling eggs.
It is potentially a real problem for consumers, as even though the number of bodgy eggs was small - probably around 15 dozen in total - consumers are at risk.
The eggs were packed in second hand cartons (which is illegal), they did not met labelling requirements and none of the sellers had food safety programs in place.
The biggest problem for us is that if consumers get sick from eating eggs and they say they bought them at one of the markets where we are the only 'official' egg sellers, we will have to convince health authorities that the eggs were not ours.
It is still a significant issue as the cost of compliance with food safety regulations (including labelling, using new cartons, candeling and grading requirements, refrigeration etc) all add to our costs. The backyard operators ignore all those regulations.
Given the number of markets held each week in Victoria, it's likely that at least 5000 dozen 'illegal' eggs are dumped on consumers at markets. That's around 260,000 dozen a year in the State of Victoria alone - probably more than a million dozen throughout Australia.