Are you superstitious? If so, you may already know that cracking into an egg with an eggstra yolk may mean good luck! It may even mean twins are in your future! Whether or not you believe those things to be true, have you ever wondered why some eggs have two yolks instead of one?
Coming across a double yolked egg is a bit like finding a needle in the haystack or a four leaf clover. It’s a mysterious surprise – but how does it happen? Recently, one of our customers reached out on our Instagram page regarding double yolks. She said:
“We had a whole carton of [Farmer Boy Eggs] a few weeks ago that was all double yolks. I loved that! What explains getting so many at once?”
Depending on how you look at it, double yolks are kind of rare. So it can definitely be surprising when you find an entire carton of double yolks! The general estimate is that a double yolk occurs in one out of every 1,000 eggs.
But to really understand the science behind the double yolk and why you may find them in one of your Farmer Boy Eggs cartons, you’ll need to have a better understanding of a hen’s egg-straordinary reproductive system.
Why do some eggs have double yolks?
Eggs with double yolks commonly come from younger hens who are still learning how to lay eggs. That’s right– this is a learned process for hens!
A hen’s reproductive system is made up of an ovary and an oviduct. The hens’ ovary contains undeveloped egg yolks. And the number of yolks (or ovum) contained in the ovary are the total number of eggs that that particular chicken can lay in her life.
As each yolk develops, ova are released into the oviduct. This usually occurs about an hour after the previous egg was laid. However, in young pullets, sometimes two yolks are released within a couple of hours. It takes a bit for younger hens to really get the hang of this whole laying eggs thing– it’s not all it’s cracked up to be!
And this can lead to the double-yolked eggs you may come across when making an omelette or your favorite chocolate cake! As hens age, their systems tend to settle down and they’ll mature into producing just one single-yolk egg (approximately every 25 hours!).
Of course, genetics may have a thing or two to do with double yolks. Some breeds just have a higher propensity for double yolks!
Can you tell if an egg has more than one yolk before cracking?
While there are ways to tell early on if an egg will have two yolks, it may be more difficult to discern while you’re in a grocery store. However, it’s true that double yolked eggs tend to be larger. So, if you’re hoping for double yolks, we suggest buying the largest sized eggs you can!
This is also why you may find more than one double-yolked egg in a carton, as our Instagram commenter did. Something that may seem rare in nature can suddenly appear rather common. This is because larger eggs are all grouped together during the packing process and placed into the same cartons.
If you crack open a Farmer Boy egg and come across a double yolk, chances are you’ll find another eggstra yolk or two in your dozen.
But… are double yolk eggs safe to eat?
Some people may be a bit shell-shocked to come across a double yolk egg. We want you to know these double yolks are egg-cellent and totally safe to eat!
Enjoy them and be sure to tag us on Instagram or Facebook the next time you come across a double yolk in your Farmer Boy Eggs! Let us know what you cooked up with the extra yolk.
Written by Pintler Group Digital Marketing: interactive video by RevelForms.