Dransfield Poultry

Monday, September 25th, 2006

Posting eggs in polystyrene boxes

Over the last few weeks we have noticed a few remarks about the supposed downside of using Polystyrene egg boxes for sending eggs through the postal system. We would like to allay the fears of people with a few points ourselves, by taking each remark in turn.

1/ Can using poly boxes harm the eggs and reduce fertility.

Our reply / If the boxes are hot wire cut, the process releases isocyanate gas which is highly toxic, and if the eggs are stored in them for any length of time the embryo will be affected if not killed. We were fully aware of this fact before we started production of the boxes, and went to great lengths to produce our boxes by mechanical means (although this cost us quite a lot more to set up) thereby eliminating the release of this toxic gas. This had the added bonus of leaving the inside of the hole with a softer textured surface, unlike the surface of hot-wired boxes, which is hard.

2/ Does putting eggs in polystyrene boxes make them hot and make them sweat.

Our reply / There are several reasons for putting eggs in poly boxes these are as follows;

The eggs are protected from extremes of temperature because of the nature of polystyrene, which is an insulating material. This means it is physically impossible for the boxes to make the eggs hotter or colder than when they were put in them. In fact as can be seen from the last article we are constantly striving to improve our products and are doing tests on a material with even higher insulation values then the one we currently use.( and they look good in silver grey.)

The eggs are protected from damage from knocks and bangs. Our boxes use low-density polystyrene especially for this reason. Following extensive drop testing of our prototype boxes we found that the higher density polystyrene and polyurethane and Styrofoam were prone to transfer the impact through to the eggs causing breakages.

The simplicity of putting the eggs in the box and taping them with two pieces of “fragile” tape, one at each end makes it quick and easy to send them. There is no need to use more and by leaving the gap between the top and bottom, it allows a small amount of air to enter the boxes to allow the eggs to breath. If the boxes are too big for the eggs, the simple way to pack them out is to use the cheap to buy circular makeup remover pads, both underneath and on top of the eggs. Using plastic bubble wrap can cause the eggs to suffocate or sweat.

Finally we feel that the people who make these remarks are trying to skimp on costs by using in most cases old egg boxes (which themselves can carry diseases) and the obvious fact that there will inevitably be breakages and poor fertility by using these methods. This will result in increased costs and poor customer relations.

Using a good quality well-constructed Polystyrene Box will not be detrimental to the eggs and will pay in the end.

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