Arizona retailers want to extend the shelf life for storing Grade A eggs sold in Arizona. The battle is over $3 million worth of expired eggs thrown out each year.
When shoppers buy eggs at a the grocery, they can count on the egg being no more than 24 days old. It’s a standard set locally and nationally.
But retail lobbyist Michelle Ahlmer wants Arizona to bypass federal guidelines and tack on another 18 days to that expiration date.
"We're not talking about health and safety. We're talking the difference between a grade A and a grade AA. The yolk rides a little bit from the center. I think for most consumers, they're not really worried about where the yolk is on the center of the egg," Ahlmer said.
Glenn Hickman with Hickman's Family Farms admits eggs aren’t spoiled at 24 days, but multiple studies show the quality diminishes every day after.
"If we went from 24 to even 30 days on grade AA, then you're talking about six additional days. Twenty percent of the days they would be out of compliance, at best. And the consumer wouldn't be getting what they paid for," Hickman said.
Ahlmer argues by expanding the dateline it opens up the market for competition.
