Should Eggs Be Refrigerated? In the US, Yes. Here's Why

Should eggs be refrigerated?

Should eggs be refrigerated? If you bought them at a US grocery store, yes, every time. The FDA's advice to consumers is to buy eggs only from a refrigerated case and store them in a clean refrigerator at 40°F or below. This is not a matter of taste: American eggs go through a process that makes cold storage necessary.

The argument usually starts when someone who grew up in Europe, or has traveled there, points out that stores in many European countries sell eggs on an unrefrigerated shelf. They are right about Europe. They are just talking about a different egg.

Why US eggs need the fridge

According to the USDA's Agricultural Research Service, US producers began washing and refrigerating eggs in the early 1970s because of concerns about spoilage and foodborne illness. Processors taking part in USDA grading spray-wash eggs with warm water, use a sanitizing rinse and air-dry them. The aim is to reduce Salmonella on the shell.

Once eggs are washed, they have to stay cold. The FDA requires egg producers to keep eggs at 45°F starting 36 hours after they are laid, and its Egg Safety Rule requires refrigeration during storage and transport. The FDA estimates the rule prevents about 79,000 cases of foodborne illness and 30 deaths a year. It also warns that even fresh eggs with clean, uncracked shells may contain Salmonella, which is why cooking matters too.

The verdict

What it sounds like

Why Europe does it differently

In most of the European Union, eggs are neither washed nor refrigerated in stores. Instead of washing the shell, European and British rules go after Salmonella at the source, with regular testing of laying flocks and strict hygiene rules on farms. Because the eggs are not washed, they keep the thin natural coating on the shell, called the cuticle.

The cuticle is often described as a shield against bacteria, but even that is debated. An ARS researcher points out that the cuticle dries and comes off after laying, and that its job is to control respiration for a developing chick, not to block Salmonella. Canada, Japan and the Scandinavian countries also wash and refrigerate their eggs, so the US is not alone.

What the egg storage research found

The USDA's Agricultural Research Service compared 5,400 eggs stored four ways over 15 weeks, including washed and unwashed eggs, refrigerated and at room temperature. Refrigerated eggs, washed or not, were still Grade A on average after 15 weeks. Unwashed eggs kept at room temperature, about 72°F, dropped from Grade AA to Grade B within a week and lost 15 percent of their weight over the study.

The summary from the study is the whole argument in one line: egg quality stays high with refrigeration and degrades rapidly without it.

How to store eggs at home

Follow the FDA's rules and the argument goes away:

• Buy eggs only from a refrigerated case.
• Store them in the refrigerator at 40°F or below. A fridge thermometer helps.
• Once eggs have been refrigerated, keep them cold. Do not leave cooked eggs or egg dishes out for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F.
• Cook eggs until the yolk and white are firm, and cook egg dishes to 160°F.
• Farm eggs from small flocks may fall under state rules rather than federal ones. If the farmer refrigerated them, keep them refrigerated.

The ruling

In the US, refrigerate your eggs. American eggs are washed, the FDA requires them to be kept cold from soon after laying, and the research shows quality drops fast at room temperature. The European side is right about European eggs and wrong about American ones.

"They don't refrigerate eggs in Europe" is a true fact used as a bad argument, a bit of cherry picking that leaves out the washing that makes the difference. "My grandma never refrigerated hers" has the same flaw: her eggs came from her own hens, and judging store eggs by them is a hasty generalization. Still arguing? Paste both sides into the argument judge.