I’ve just bought a new fridge and it comes with a section to hold eggs. I’ve never stored them in the fridge since salmonella isn’t really a problem here because our chickens are vaccinated. Does anybody in the UK actually refrigerate their eggs?

As an aside, I tend to decide what goes into the fridge based on where it was in the supermarket. If they don’t refrigerate it, neither do I. So for eggs, I don’t.

Secondary question - what am I gonna use the egg holder in the fridge for now, other than maybe briefly cooling my balls?

  • menemen@lemmy.ml
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    6 hours ago

    We don’t have to in Germany, but they last longer and sometimes we don’t eat a lot of eggs. Putting them in the fridge ensures that we can safely eat them even quite some time after the expiration date (then we cook them fully though).

    • dingus@lemmy.world
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      2 hours ago

      I’m in the US, so I do have to store eggs in the fridge. BUT I do what you do for a lot of foods that don’t need to be refrigerated. I refrigerate them anyway because they last longer. I live alone, so my groceries don’t deplete as fast as people with large families, and so it makes sense for me to try to stave off food spoilage as long as possible.

  • Luvs2Spuj@lemmy.world
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    7 hours ago

    I don’t keep them in the fridge, I’ve got my own hens and I didn’t before when I got shop bought eggs. I have 0 concern about salmonella or anything like that.

    The fridge egg holder is for keeping hard boiled eggs, not raw ones.

    • Quicky@lemmy.worldOP
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      5 hours ago

      The fridge egg holder is for keeping hard boiled eggs, not raw ones.

      That’s an interesting observation, I hadn’t thought of that. Although the day I consider pre-boiling eggs for later consumption is the day I give up on the illusion of youth.

  • Joshi@aussie.zone
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    10 hours ago

    Apricots, upside down pears, Easter eggs, those teeny tiny sealed shot glasses of UHT milk you get in hotels, those big marbles we used to call Tom bowlers in primary school, eye balls, a large toy ant(assuming 6 holes in the holder rather than 12, otherwise 2 large toy ants)

    The possibilities are endless!!!

    • elucubra
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      6 hours ago

      I think it is obvious that the intended use is Easter eggs, and kinders in a pinch. Also, that sock drawer to keep socks cool in the summer is genius

  • Nighed@feddit.uk
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    22 hours ago

    I put them in the fridge… On top of the egg holder … In their box 😈

    I don’t get through many, so putting them there means I know they are probably still good after a couple of months. The box has the best before date to let me know if I need to float test then.

    • Quicky@lemmy.worldOP
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      21 hours ago

      I put them in the fridge… On top of the egg holder … In their box

      Absolute madman

  • xmunk@sh.itjust.works
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    1 day ago

    It’s not just vaccination - European eggs aren’t pressure washed like American ones to remove the protective coating.

    I’ve honestly never understood why America does that to their eggs.

    • flubba86@lemmy.world
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      5 hours ago

      In Australia our eggs are kept in the refrigerated section in the supermarket (usually near the cheese and butter, because everyone knows eggs are dairy), and we’ve always put them in the fridge at home, so I guess they wash the protective coating off here too.

    • Stovetop@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      Salmonella. It’s carried in chicken dung, sometimes eggs get a bit of feces on them, so the US washes them to attempt to reduce exposure.

      Problem is that without the protective coating, the eggs are more permeable and susceptible to bacterial infection, hence the refrigeration.

      So it’s a question of whether it’s better to reduce bacteria exposure or susceptibility. I am sure there’s research out there with numbers indicating one works better than the other, but it’s been such a long-standing thing at this point that I don’t think Americans would trust unrefrigerated eggs.

      • cynar@lemmy.world
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        9 hours ago

        Both work for protecting humans. However, I believe vaccination is better overall. It also improves the quality of life of the chickens. Unfortunately, it’s also (very slightly) more expensive, so America went the cheap route. The EU mandated to reduce animal cruelty, by vaccination.

      • protist@mander.xyz
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        1 day ago

        The research shows both methods are equally effective at controlling salmonella, afaik

  • whaleross@lemmy.world
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    22 hours ago

    I do here in Sweden despite there is no need. Mostly because it is the convenient place in my kitchen.

  • Vanth@reddthat.com
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    1 day ago

    Refrigerating eggs also roughly doubles their shelf life.

    Is salmonella vaccination required in the UK now? It’s been a few years but last I knew it was voluntary and roughly 3/4 of egg farmers did do it.

    Egg farmers? Chicken ranchers? Poultry producer? Idk what they’re called.

    • Quicky@lemmy.worldOP
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      1 day ago

      Refrigerating eggs also roughly doubles their shelf life.

      Yeah that’s fair enough, although they already last for ages. “Can’t wait to eat these eggs in a month”.

      • evasive_chimpanzee@lemmy.world
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        1 day ago

        Do yourself a favor and find a local small farmer to buy eggs directly from. They are much better than supermarket eggs. It’s not necessarily a matter of keeping eggs from going bad, it’s more about preserving them at that peak flavor/texture. I have no clue where this picture is from, so I don’t know if the data are sound, but you get the idea. https://digitaleggtester.com/wordpress/wp-content/themes/nabel/files/images/egg/img_yi02.png

        • Quicky@lemmy.worldOP
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          24 hours ago

          To be honest, I live rurally and there’s no shortage of roadside eggs available from nearby farms. A lot of them actually stock local shops, including the bigger chains where I live, because there’s an overall community preference to buy local where possible.

          In terms of flavour, that’s actually something that’s recommended by at least one celebrity chef here, who suggests not putting them in the fridge so that they don’t absorb tastes and smells from other foods within.

          James Martin’s egg opinion

  • Lucy :3@feddit.org
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    17 hours ago

    I’ve always done that, here in germany. They are supposed to last at least ~2 weeks (or so, idk) at room temperature, after all they are stored like that in stores. But the eggs I have right now are more like 3-4 weeks old, so I prefer to put them in the fridge, because why not? They don’t take much space and last for double as long, so 6 weeks.

  • evasive_chimpanzee@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    When I buy supermarket eggs, I refrigerate them because they are washed (in the US). When I get unwashed eggs (from a farm or a friend), I still refrigerate them and just wash them prior to use. I don’t have to refrigerate them since they have the cuticle intact, but refrigerating them still makes them stay fresher longer, so if I have the space for them, why would I not?

    That said, the eggs already come in a carton, so I’m not going to transfer them into a separate container in my fridge for no reason.

          • HubertManne@moist.catsweat.com
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            6 hours ago

            I apologize. I truly was just trying to explain the likely reason his fridge had an egg holder. My bad apparently. I actually felt I was helping in my commentary but sorry as I apparently missinterpreted the post as being about why a fridge has an egg container.

        • Quicky@lemmy.worldOP
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          23 hours ago

          It’s what’s going in the appliance I’m asking about, not the appliance itself.

  • Thavron@lemmy.ca
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    1 day ago

    As an aside, I tend to decide what goes into the fridge based on where it was in the supermarket. If they don’t refrigerate it, neither do I.

    There are quite a few items that are fine to store unrefrigerated until opened, but need to stay cold afterwards. Jam comes to mind.

    • Quicky@lemmy.worldOP
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      1 day ago

      Yeah that doesn’t really apply to eggs though, their “container” is unopened. Otherwise your fridge will get messy.

      But yeah, obviously I’m gonna put stuff in the fridge that would go off once the seal has been broken.

  • Jo Miran@lemmy.ml
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    1 day ago

    In the US, eggs are washed, which significantly decreases their shelf life.

  • protist@mander.xyz
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    1 day ago

    The methods of salmonella mitigation, storing eggs from vaccinated chickens unwashed at room temp or storing washed eggs in the refrigerator, have roughly equal outcomes. There are still many egg-related salmonella outbreaks across Europe each year, roughly equivalent to the US. One method is not superior to another as far as outcomes, they’re just two different systems that already exist and therefore are unlikely to change without a good reason