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Commercial Classification of Shell Eggs
Appears in
By Paula Figoni
Published 2003
Shell eggs are eggs purchased in their shells, either by the dozen or in flats. One flat holds 2½ dozen or 30 eggs. There are 12 flats in a case, which means that one case contains 30 dozen or 360 eggs.
Shell eggs are sometimes called fresh eggs, but this is misleading. Shell eggs might be several weeks or months old, so they are not necessarily fresh. Shell eggs are sorted and classified according to grade (quality) and size. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) offer programs to classify and label eggs with both a grade and a size classification. In Canada, the program is mandatory; in the United States, it is voluntary, with about 30 percent of all eggs sold in the United States graded by the USDA.