Every time I hear someone in logistics talking about “traceability” and “life cycles,” I can’t help but think about my chickens. Yes, certifications are fancy, with their big words—“full traceability of the process,” “life cycle assessment,” all that—but It’s exactly what I do every single day with eggs… likely I have those knowledge because it’s what I do for a living 😂
The life cycle is basically the story of a product: from birth to the moment it’s eaten, sold, or sometimes—thrown into the trash because life happens. And honestly, eggs make the best example.
Let’s dive in:
For me, the egg life cycle starts with collection. I note when the egg was picked up (usually 3 times per day, sometimes 2) and this same data doubles as my chicken tracking log. It’s also important data reflect chicken health and wellbeing. Then it goes into temporary storage in the refrigerator, marked with a little “egg passport.” Later it gets a permanent date, depending on where it’s headed: straight to my kitchen or into the sale box. I also process all data monthly, adding it into annual database for the analysis and forecasting.
Why it’s so important? Because eggs are very important data that says everything about your chickens! Also it’s easier to run zero waste logistics where you have full assurance that you and your customers have fresh possible eggs.
For home use it’s also has some complications.
Let’s say: some recipes demand room-temperature eggs—try making pudding with fridge-cold ones, and you’ll learn quickly why bakers get dramatic about it. So I take them out twenty-four hours before, almost like setting up a spa day for them. But I only take off the refrigerator whatever needed for the baking.
Selling has its own rules. Only clean eggs get into new cartons with data collection data being transferred precisely.
Around 3% of my farm eggs show up dirty (thanks, chickens), and those go straight into the “immediate use” pile but in temporary cartons in special place in the refrigerator, also marked and dated. Cracked or suspicious ones? Biohazard corner, they will be boiled (temperature treatment) and most likely feed back to chickens as a supplement mix. Anyway, all separate categories will be marked and date collection data transferred. They get their own cardboard box, dated and kept far away from the good batch, even though they’re usually harmless. I treat them like they’re radioactive—because biosecurity is about discipline, not shortcuts.
And here comes my favorite ritual: the “egg reset date.” Once a month, sometimes twice, I check every carton in the fridge and on the counter (if there are any), making sure no egg is older than the reset date. It’s like spring cleaning, but instead of closets, it’s omelets. With 30–50 eggs collected daily, trust me, this flow matters.
If auditors ever wanted to see a perfect case study of logistics, they should just shadow me and my egg cartons. That’s traceability, certification, and life cycle management—right there, feathered but transparent… and practical.
