Will brown eggs also disappear from our supermarkets soon, like in the Netherlands?

Will brown eggs also disappear from our supermarkets soon, like in the Netherlands? | To eat

In our neighboring countries the Netherlands and Germany, brown eggs are becoming increasingly difficult to find on store shelves. White eggs are getting more space in supermarkets and Dutch farmers also prefer white laying hens. But what is the difference between white and brown eggs? And will Belgian supermarkets soon follow suit?

You may have already noticed when you walk past the egg department in a supermarket: there are more and more white eggs available. This is even more the case in the Netherlands than in Belgium. According to Ine Kempen of the Poultry Farming Pilot Company, there are several reasons for this. “Belgium and the Netherlands operate in different markets. For example, they apply different legislation for the production and sale of eggs. In addition, consumers in both countries have different preferences.”

White and brown eggs are not the same

But what is the difference between white and brown eggs? “The biggest difference is the environmental friendliness. White eggs are more sustainable to produce than brown eggs. This is because chickens that lay white eggs require less food, while producing the same number of eggs. This ensures that the ecological footprint of their eggs is smaller than that of their ‘colleagues’ who lay brown eggs. Moreover, the purchase price for the supermarket is therefore lower.”

Many people think that brown eggs are healthier, but that is not the case
Ine Kempen from Proefbedrijf Poultry Husbandry

Other than the carbon footprint and purchase price, there are not many differences between white and brown eggs. “Many people think that brown eggs are healthier, but that is not the case. White and brown eggs have the same taste and quality.”

What about our supermarkets?

In the Netherlands there are already more white eggs than brown eggs in the supermarket. But what about us? “Here you will find both white and brown eggs. We do see that sales of white eggs are gradually improving. It increases every year,” says spokesperson Ann Claes of Albert Heijn Belgium.

According to her, the popularity is mainly due to the ecological footprint of the eggs. “The CO is always stated on the packaging of the eggs at Albert Heijn₂emissions. For example, a pack of white eggs emits 2.6 kg of CO₂ per kg out. For a pack of brown eggs this is 2.8 kg of CO₂. Customers are increasingly taking this into account.”

Both eggs are very popular with our customers. Yet we try to focus strongly on white eggs
Isabelle Colbrandt, spokesperson for Lidl Belgium

At Lidl, sales of brown eggs in particular continue to do well. “We originally only sold brown eggs. We have also been offering white eggs for six months now, because they are more sustainable. But that does not mean that sales of brown eggs will decrease. Both eggs are very popular with our customers. Yet we also try to focus heavily on white eggs,” says Isabelle Colbrandt, spokesperson for Lidl Belgium.

More and more supermarkets are focusing on the sale of white eggs and that is paying off. More and more people are choosing the more sustainable alternative. Yet Ine Kempen emphasizes that despite the popularity of white eggs, the brown variant will certainly not immediately disappear from our store shelves. “Compared to other countries, we stick much more to brown eggs. Maybe one day they will disappear from the supermarket, but that is certainly not the case for the time being.”