2008 Woodie Awards
Iowa the egg beater
Bryce Bauer - The Daily Iowan
Issue date: 3/24/08 Section: Metro
This past weekend, millions of adults and children in the United States and world gathered in a tradition older than Christ Himself: the decorating of and hunting for colored, often ornately adorned eggs.
And while reasons for the celebration may differ (the Iowa Egg Council notes the edible-embryo enclosure was used to exalt the coming of spring by many early civilizations), many events have something in common: A lot of those eggs came from Iowa.
A recent study, produced by the Iowa State University Extension, found that the Hawkeye State is the nation's largest egg producer, laying more than 13.9 billion omelet makers in 2007 alone - a full 15 percent of that year's yield, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show.
But that hasn't always been the case.
Iowa was the dominate "hen fruit" (an 1850s facetious synonym) until the late 1950s, but it didn't crack into the forefront again until 2001, the study finds.
Part of the reason, said Daniel Otto an ISU economics professor who conducted research for the study, is because overall egg consumption has risen recently - the U.S. consumes more than 250 eggs per person. Not all of that increase can be attributed to higher consumption of quiches and Benedicts, however.
With machines capable of cracking more than 100,000 eggs an hour, most of the extra egg eating has come in the category of "egg products," which are cheaper to transport than their whole counterparts. (Undoubtedly, an annual contest launched in 2002 by the Aerospace Industries Association challenging seventh to 12 graders to rocket two raw eggs 750-feet in the air and return them safely has also been responsible for a number of scrambled yolks.)
Iowa also has a number of competitive advantages, Otto said.
"The big factor is the cost of feed," he said, noting Iowa produces large amounts of corn and soybeans. Also, Iowa "is a rural state, so you are not going to deal with the urban conflict of other states."
Yolk-centric conflict has, however, hatched at the UI. In 2006, community members pushed the UI Associate Residence Halls to request eggs only from cage-free eggs.
Doug Alberhasky, the manager of John's Grocery, 401 E. Market St., said the grocery store has, in recent years, seen an increase in the number of eggs it sells - going from about 30 dozen a week a few years ago to around 100 now. Overall business at the store has also increased during the same time, he noted, nothing that the store's deli has been using more eggs as well.
Regardless of the trend, Alberhasky did have one comment about the eggs he sells: "Just as long as people are using them for cooking," he said, "and not to throw at people."
E-mail DI reporter Bryce Bauer at:
bryce-bauer@uiowa.edu
And while reasons for the celebration may differ (the Iowa Egg Council notes the edible-embryo enclosure was used to exalt the coming of spring by many early civilizations), many events have something in common: A lot of those eggs came from Iowa.
A recent study, produced by the Iowa State University Extension, found that the Hawkeye State is the nation's largest egg producer, laying more than 13.9 billion omelet makers in 2007 alone - a full 15 percent of that year's yield, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show.
But that hasn't always been the case.
Iowa was the dominate "hen fruit" (an 1850s facetious synonym) until the late 1950s, but it didn't crack into the forefront again until 2001, the study finds.
Part of the reason, said Daniel Otto an ISU economics professor who conducted research for the study, is because overall egg consumption has risen recently - the U.S. consumes more than 250 eggs per person. Not all of that increase can be attributed to higher consumption of quiches and Benedicts, however.
With machines capable of cracking more than 100,000 eggs an hour, most of the extra egg eating has come in the category of "egg products," which are cheaper to transport than their whole counterparts. (Undoubtedly, an annual contest launched in 2002 by the Aerospace Industries Association challenging seventh to 12 graders to rocket two raw eggs 750-feet in the air and return them safely has also been responsible for a number of scrambled yolks.)
Iowa also has a number of competitive advantages, Otto said.
"The big factor is the cost of feed," he said, noting Iowa produces large amounts of corn and soybeans. Also, Iowa "is a rural state, so you are not going to deal with the urban conflict of other states."
Yolk-centric conflict has, however, hatched at the UI. In 2006, community members pushed the UI Associate Residence Halls to request eggs only from cage-free eggs.
Doug Alberhasky, the manager of John's Grocery, 401 E. Market St., said the grocery store has, in recent years, seen an increase in the number of eggs it sells - going from about 30 dozen a week a few years ago to around 100 now. Overall business at the store has also increased during the same time, he noted, nothing that the store's deli has been using more eggs as well.
Regardless of the trend, Alberhasky did have one comment about the eggs he sells: "Just as long as people are using them for cooking," he said, "and not to throw at people."
E-mail DI reporter Bryce Bauer at:
bryce-bauer@uiowa.edu
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