In less than two months it will be a legal requirement for eggs sold on market stalls to be stamped with a producer code.
The egg stamping rules have applied to retail sales of eggs since the beginning of last year but producers selling their own production, direct to consumers, on a market stall have been exempt.
From July 1 that all changes and the individual code will have to be printed on the egg. It does not mean though that eggs have to be graded before selling in this way, a fact which is causing some confusion amongst producers.
The only other requirement is, and always has been, that a ’best before date’ is indicated by either a notice on the stall or a pre-printed note on the package or given with the eggs to the consumer at the time of purchase. This date must be a maximum of 28 days from the date of lay.
Although it is not mandatory, the egg marketing inspectorate is advising that an explanation, such as that below, displayed at the point of sale will help consumers understand the code.
Codes on eggs indicate the following:
0 - Organic
1 - Free-Range
2 - Barn
3 - Cage
UK - Origin
It will still be permissible for producers to sell their own ungraded eggs without being stamped direct to consumers either at the farmgate or via door-to-door sales.
