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I bought some fresh eggs the other day which don't expire until next month.

They've remained in the fridge in their carton. I just realised that a few of the eggs are cracked.

Is it still safe to hard boil and eat the eggs from that carton that haven't been cracked?

Debbie M.
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username
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    To be clear they were probably cracked in the supermarket or on the way home the other day. I didn't cracked them just now. – username Oct 04 '15 at 12:24
  • Cracked eggs shouldn't be eaten: [FDA](http://www.fda.gov/Food/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm077342.htm), [USDA](http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/egg-products-preparation/shell-eggs-from-farm-to-table), [NSW Food Authority](http://www.fishersghost.com.au/Assets/1861/1/eggs_in_food_service_manufacturing.pdf), and Departments of Health for [Queensland](https://www.health.qld.gov.au/foodsafety/documents/fs-27-egg.pdf) and [Victoria](http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Food_safety_storing_eggs). – kdbanman Oct 05 '15 at 19:55

4 Answers4

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It does seem dangerous to me. You don't know where they have been before you bought them, so bacteria and other stuff can contaminate the eggs with their shell broken. You can safely eat the eggs that didn't break. Their shell and membrane protects them. The broken ones should be thrown away if you want to be sure you are safe.

This reference puts it this way:

Cracks in the shells of eggs can allow bacteria or other pathogens to contaminate the egg and make you sick. While cooking does reduce the amount of most contaminants, it does not remove them completely.

And from the USDA:

Bacteria can enter eggs through cracks in the shell. Never purchase cracked eggs. However, if eggs crack on the way home from the store, break them into a clean container, cover it tightly, keep refrigerated, and use within 2 days. If eggs crack during hard cooking, they are safe. Remember that all eggs should be thoroughly cooked.

Patrick Hofman
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  • So I can't even boil eggs that are not cracked, but came from the same carton? – username Oct 04 '15 at 12:45
  • You can eat the eggs that didn't break. Their shell protects them. The broken ones should be thrown away if you want to be sure you are safe. – Patrick Hofman Oct 04 '15 at 12:46
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    The shell is permeable and is not part of what keeps out infections and bacteria. It's the membrane that does that. If the membrane hasn't ruptured than an egg riddled with cracks is just as protected as one without cracks in the shell. – Escoce Oct 05 '15 at 18:36
  • @Escoce, can you cite your claim? The [FDA](http://www.fda.gov/Food/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm077342.htm), the [USDA](http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/egg-products-preparation/shell-eggs-from-farm-to-table), and the Departments of Health for [Queensland](https://www.health.qld.gov.au/foodsafety/documents/fs-27-egg.pdf) and [Victoria](http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Food_safety_storing_eggs) all agree that cracked eggs shouldn't be eaten unless they're immediately shelled and refrigerated. – kdbanman Oct 05 '15 at 19:35
  • @Escoce, moreover, [these egg safety guidelines from the NSW government](http://www.fishersghost.com.au/Assets/1861/1/eggs_in_food_service_manufacturing.pdf) distinguish between *broken* and *cracked* eggs. A broken egg has neither shell nor membrane intact, and a cracked egg has membrane intact, but shell not intact. It also indicates that *both* are considered unsafe. – kdbanman Oct 05 '15 at 19:39
  • @kdbanman thanks for the useful links. I have incorporated one in my answer. – Patrick Hofman Oct 05 '15 at 19:40
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    As is common of regulatory documents, links to original, peer reviewed research do not exist in the documents I just shared, so I am willing to believe that cracked eggs still could be safe, but I will not believe it until appropriate citations are provided. Sure, shells are porous, but they're still protection. One of the documents I linked instructed *not* to wash eggs with water, because the shell is more porous when wet and more readily allows bacteria through. Surely if the membrane were perfect protection, then a more porous shell would not matter. – kdbanman Oct 05 '15 at 19:44
  • Shells protect the the shape of the egg, the membrane protects the biological aspects. – Escoce Oct 05 '15 at 19:55
  • Regarding the FDA and USDA, they also say that eggs are not safe if not kept refrigerated, yet anyone who has grown chickens or has forthwith just given it a try discovers that eggs are perfectly safe kept out on the counter for weeks on end. I haven't refrigerated an uncooked unbroken egg in decades. It's common practice to not refrigerate eggs in most of the world. A bad egg is evident, they go bad very quickly when they do go bad. – Escoce Oct 05 '15 at 19:58
  • @Escoce, when I lived in Australia I didn't refrigerate eggs either. But those are not citations, those are anecdotes. I believe your claim that the membrane's primary purpose is to protect "biological aspects" of the egg, but only to the extent that keeps a growing chicken embryo alive. That's not the same as keeping an unfertilized egg safe for human consumption. I also have a hard time believing that the shell provides *zero* protection from contamination. – kdbanman Oct 05 '15 at 20:04
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I've left comments everywhere on this thread because food safety deserves a lot of visibility. Summary here:

While this may not be standard terminology, these egg safety guidelines from the NSW government distinguish between broken and cracked eggs. (It also says that both are unsafe.)

  • A broken egg has neither shell nor membrane intact
  • A cracked egg has membrane intact, but shell not intact

Cracked eggs shouldn't be eaten says the FDA, the USDA, the NSW Food Authority, and the Departments of Health for Queensland and Victoria.

As is common of regulatory documents, links to original, peer reviewed research do not exist in the documents I just shared, so I am willing to believe that cracked eggs still could be safe, but I will not believe it until appropriate citations are provided.

My own speculation: sure, shells are porous, but they're still protection. One of the documents I linked instructed not to wash eggs with water, because the shell is more porous when wet and more readily allows bacteria through. Surely if the membrane were perfect protection, then a more porous shell would not matter.

kdbanman
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If you dropped a carton of eggs while loading your groceries in the fridge i would cook those eggs ASAP the moment they dropped get that frying pan ready and cook them whether you're hungry or not other wise toss them out in the garbage.Eggs are not very expensive.Cracked eggs can easily be replaced with only a few dollars but a human life can not be replaced. Toss the cracked or broken eggs out.

Charlie Evans
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Normally only safe for a few hours. Need to be cooked right away. Setting a few days I would not chance it. That is fresh eggs. Farm fresh that day's eggs. Not store bought & set for how long?

J Bergen
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