The Internet is filled with reports of artificial eggs being sold in stores. They may look real, but can lose their shape, the yolk can turn blue when boiling, and the shell, made of plaster and paraffin, turns out to be flammable.
Most of these reports copy each other and refer to the story of a Chinese man who allegedly worked at an artificial egg factory. Is it a fake or not?
“Artificial eggs? Such news only baffles,” says Director of ООО Chebarkulskaya Ptitsa Dmitriy Pyrsikov. “Nature gives people a unique product that cannot be replaced by any other synthetic structure. It is simply impossible to push eggs out of the market.”
Such products as plant-based eggs do exist, but you should not worry about accidentally buying them in a supermarket. Plant-based eggs are an expensive commercial product designed for vegans and those with egg-white allergies.
“No plant-based eggs can replace the benefits of ordinary eggs for the human body,” says Director of the SUSU School of Medical Biology Irina Potoroko. “Eggs are of utmost biological value. Today one can make many different artifacts, but artificial eggs with shells flooding the market… I do not believe that. No retail chain would risk its reputation this way. There is a GOST that lists the categories of edible chicken eggs; information about this shall be indicated on the packaging or directly on the shell. Grocery stores are equipped with ovoscopes devices that can be used to determine the quality of natural eggs. If you do not trust it, check it!”
Besides, as for blue yolks, the situation in which the yolk takes on a blue-green tint when contacting the white does occur, but in ordinary eggs, and the reason for this is iron sulfide, which is formed during long boiling.