As Americans feast on turkey this Thanksgiving, many are wondering why the bird’s eggs aren’t on the menu — and it all comes down to cost.
Unlike chickens, which produce four to six about every 24 hours, turkeys drop one every two weeks, making them rarer and more valuable.
Farmers would have to sell each egg for at least $3, making a full dozen $36, compared to the average cost of $3.00 for their feathered counterparts.
In addition, wild bird eggs contain twice as many calories and grams of fat and four times as much cholesterol as those from chickens.
However, Native American tribes and early European settlers ate the eggs.
Farmers would have to sell each egg for at least $3, making a full dozen $36, compared to the average cost of $3.00 for their feathered counterparts
Some Native American tribes, especially in the northeastern and southeastern US, domesticated turkeys long before European settlers arrived in the 17th century.
When Europeans started consuming wild turkey eggs, they discovered that they were larger than chicken eggs, making them a popular food choice.
But rumors swirled in France that turkey eggs were linked to leprosy outbreaks, fueled by the birds’ foreign origins and the public’s distrust of new foods.
At the same time, Americans viewed eggs as a luxury item between the 16th and 17th centuries.
By the 18th century, their popularity in the US had grown so much that the domestication of turkeys became widespread.
For example, the iconic Delmonico’s restaurant in New York served scrambled or poached turkey eggs, as well as in frittatas and omelettes.
However, the rise of industrial poultry farming in the 20th century changed the landscape of American food.
Today, turkey eggs are a rarity and are sought mainly by food lovers or farmers looking to meet Thanksgiving demand
Technological advances allowed farmers to specialize chickens for egg production or meat, making chicken eggs more cost-efficient and easier to obtain. As a result, turkey eggs began to lose favor, and even Delmonico eventually removed them from their menu.
Today, turkey eggs are a rarity and are sought mainly by food lovers or farmers looking to meet Thanksgiving demand.
In 2024, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported a shortage of turkey eggs. As of June 1, 2024, turkey egg inventories in incubators have fallen to their lowest level since 1988, with just 22.8 million eggs.
The shortage, which has been blamed on bird flu outbreaks and the loss of breeding flocks, has contributed to a 6% decline in turkey production this year compared to 2023.
Americans paid an average of about $2.08 per pound, which works out to about $31 per bird that feeds 15 people.
And even though turkey numbers were low, the price was down 12 percent since last Thanksgiving.