Surprise: “pasture-raised” eggs still run on corn and soy
A viral “egg scandal” making the rounds online isn’t exposing hidden deception so much as colliding head-on with an uncomfortable reality: even premium, pasture-raised eggs are still largely products of a corn and soy-dominated food system.
Chickens are not cows.
They are omnivorous, monogastric animals, meaning they have a single stomach and cannot convert grass into energy the way ruminants like cattle can.
Chickens also have very fast metabolisms and a high core body temperature. Anyone who has raised chickens knows this well: they poop a lot.
That’s a sign of rapid digestion and a high metabolism.
And high metabolic rates come with high demands.
Chickens require high levels of calories, nutrients and protein.
Laying hens require consistent, energy-dense nutrition to meet their needs for:
Adequate calories
Complete protein (essential amino acids)
Critical minerals like calcium and phosphorus, which are essential for egg production
Grass and insects alone cannot reliably meet these needs, especially year-round or at any sort of price-reasonable scale.
Without sufficient calories and balanced nutrition, hens will:
Lose body condition
Reduce or stop laying
Develop nutrient deficiencies
Become more vulnerable to stress and disease
That outcome isn’t “natural.”
It isn’t humane.
It’s neglect.
The surprise isn’t what’s in the eggs, it’s how much faith people put in a label.