Why yolk is yellow

You might guess then that carrots, pumpkins, peppers, Vietnamese gac fruit, and sweet potatoes are all particularly rich in carotenoids. But carotenoids are also found in green plant material, because carotenoids absorb light for photosynthesis and protect the plant from sun damage.

The reason some trees turn brilliant shades of yellow and orange in autumn is because you can see the colour of the carotenoids as the green chlorophyll disappears. So, our free-range chickens gained carotenoids from the grain, grass and plants they ate. Their yolks changed colour because carotenoids accumulate in fat, and about a third of the yolk is fat. This means carotenoids can also colour animal fat tissue - including your own.

If you ate an excessively high amount of squash, you would develop carotenemia - orange-tinted skin! Their pink-orange feathers are made from fats rich in carotenoids from the shrimp and algae they eat.

Since chickens around the world traditionally received different diets, there are cultural preferences for different yolk colours. Surveys show people in northern European countries prefer lighter yellow yolks, while people from southern countries —though also including Germany—want dark, deep orange yolks. Consumers think yolk colour is the most important quality for eggs and represents the healthiness of the egg and the chicken itself.

The reality is that the colour could be artificially enhanced. Small scale farmers can directly feed plant material naturally high in carotenoids e. Processed poultry feed is a blend of grain, protein, vitamins and minerals.

Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. Notice: It seems you have Javascript disabled in your Browser. In order to submit a comment to this post, please write this code along with your comment: dfdfdaf0feb5bbd. While normally I love anything from Back to the Roots, I found this article very poorly written and misleading.

Epub Aug 3. Thank you. This article leads to the misconception that hens only eat vegetables. A dark orange yolk is highly dependent on the amount of protein they eat. Chickens are actually omnivores and a healthy chicken diet will consist of lots of insects and bugs. The more insects they eat, the darker orange the yolk.

Source: My backyard where my hens roam free and are not fed any commercially prepared feed. Their plant material intake varies by the season. Their insect intake is every season except winter. In winter, their yolks are not orange, even if they have a high dark leafy green intake.

The more protein they eat, the darker the yolk. Thank you so much for sharing your feedback and experience. The world of yolks is more complex than most would think! Log in. E: admin proof. Home Find Us on Facebook. Free Range Standards. Which Free Range brands can I trust? How is Pork Produced? Definition of a Free Range Egg. What is a Pastured Egg?

What do Pastured Pigs and Chickens Eat? Labels to look for. Our Farms. How to make money farming pigs. Where to buy Pastured Pork. Standards Pigs. Environmental Management Plans. Pig Farm Management Plan. Getting Started So, you want to be a pig farmer?

Raising a Pig for Food. Raising Pastured Pigs. Water for Free Range Pigs. Fencing For Free Range Pigs. How much feed does a pig need? Feeding Pigs On Pasture. Feeding Pigs Feeding. Pig Breeds Berkshire. English Large Black. Wessex Saddleback. White Breeds. Selling your Pastured Pork. Tail docking, Teeth clipping, Castration. Pig Farming Terms. Lameness in Sows. Minimizing Piglet Losses.

Piglet Scours. Pig Diseases.