A Local Egg Community Writ in Cartons

My husband recently returned from his much-anticipated "midlife crisis" walkabout in Vermont with 25 dozen eggs. Not quite the outcome I'd expected. It turns out that Cobb Hill Cohousing, where he was staying, was experiencing an egg crisis. Their egg manager had quit, and they had dozens of eggs piling up. My husband sent out email to our friends and managed to sell about 22 dozen eggs for them (which means we have 3 dozen or so extra, in case you'd like some.)

So our dining room table is now covered with cartons of eggs. And here's the interesting thing: every one of those cartons has been reused. The cartons come from all over New England, some from grocery chains like Shur-Fine, some from large commercial egg businesses like Pete & Gerry's Organic Eggs, and some from much smaller farms. The most intriguing carton is entirely blank with a handwritten label: "Maple Knoll Farm."

Not a single one of these cartons has anything to indicate that it contains eggs from Cobb Hill Farm. All the folks at Cobb Hill added were small pieces of tape with the collection date on them. The cartons of eggs I buy from Chestnut Farm are also unlabeled. In both cases, these eggs have no need of labels because they are bought directly from the farm that produces them.

This is locavorism at its best. Looking at the pile of cartons, you know that customers brought them in to the farm to be reused, not just because it's the best thing to do for the environment, but because they have a personal relationship with the farmers and thus with the food they're eating. I certainly enjoy gathering cartons from my cohousing neighbors and bringing them to Chestnut Farm every month. Boy, will they be getting a surplus of cartons next week!

If you'd like to become part of the supply chain for your eggs, but you don't have a convenient farm to donate your used cartons to, consider bringing them to your local farmers' market, now that they're open again. I'm sure the egg vendors there will thank you.