678 Journal of Agriculture, Victoria. [15 Nov., 1919. 



wiashing hands, iVc. There is alwa^'s, however, a tendency in commercial 

 houses for both the candlers and breakers to keep the records of losses 

 as low as possible, and after rejecting a certain number of eggs, to pass 

 some that really should be discarded. This emphasizes the necessity for 

 the strictest possible supervision on the part of the officer in charge, in 

 order to maintain the highest possible standard of purity. 



In hot weather there is alway? a larger number of lower-grade egga, 

 containing a considerable number of broken yolks, whilst the vitelline 

 membranes are often so weak that the white cannot be separated from 

 the yolk, and so cannot be packed separately. For the highest class of 

 export trade, therefore, only the best spring eggs should be used. 



.Vttenfion must be paid in equipping a plant to the height of 'break- 

 ing stands, tables, and stools, in order to make the work as comfortable 

 as possible, so as to secure the maximum output. In an American 

 packing-house, where fifty-two girls were employed, the following equip- 

 ment was supplied: — Four thousand three hundred and twenty linen 

 towels, 6 inches square, for wiping hands after washing, and for drying 

 fingers during eggbreaking. (Each towel was used once and then 

 laundered.) Breaking knives, 134; cups, 379; trays, 61; egg separators, 

 97; aluminium spoons, .57. 



The Rejection of Eggs During Grading. 



The sense of smell plays an important part in the grading of break- 

 ing stock, as is shown by the fact that approximately half the rejected 

 eggs in a commercial plant were eliminated on account of a bad odour. 

 Of these about half were of musty odour, and the other half had bad 

 odours of various kinds, which were attributable to a number of causes. 

 Eggs stored temporarily in the same room as fruit absorb the odours 

 of these fruits. Eggs with the odour of kerosene are not uncommon, 

 as kerosene is sometimes used for vermin spray in fowl sheds, whilst 

 at times nest eggs containing naphthalene may cause trouble. Sour 

 eggs are contaminated with organisims of the B. Coli group. Care 

 should he exercised in grading eggs with abnormal odours. All eggs, 

 even though they appear sound, should be smelled carefully, and if 

 any doubt as to whether the odour is due to absorption or spoilage, the 

 questionable egg is discarded. Musty eggs have a characteristic odour 

 and taste. In some cases the odour resembles that of old fillers; in 

 others, that of certain weeds, tir spoiling hay or chaff. As its condition 

 can not be seen by the candle, a musty egg must be detected by its odour 

 out of the shell. This odour is not always expelled by cooking. The 

 possible presence of such an egg. and the unfortunate results, which are 

 likely to occur if it is present in cake, make egg breakers realize that 

 eggs must be graded out of the shell as well as by candle. 



Egg handlers frequently do not distinguish hetween mouldy and 

 musty eggs, although the two are different. The mouldy egg is caused 

 by the growth of moulds in the egg substance, and has an odour charac- 

 teristic of damp cellars. The musty es^g usually is normal in appear- 

 ance, and frequently resembles a perfectly fresh egg. Occasionally, 

 however, a musty egg, with a green white, is encountered. Most musty 



