Ontario Egg Producers' All images by David Barr, barr photography. Hens are housed in clean, ventilated buildings. Computerized control systems regulate heat, light and humidity and automatically dispense feed and water to the hens. Egg collection is done automatically, usually twice a day.
Eggs roll on to rollers and are gently hurried to the central packing area.
The eggs are usually picked up within 4 days and delivered to a grading station. The average hen lays close to 300 eggs a year and consumes about 36 kilograms of feed during the laying period. At the grading station, the eggs are removed from the carts and placed on to an assembly line for washing, candling, sizing and cartoning. Metal arms with suction cups gently lift the eggs and place them on to a moving track. The eggs are washed and sanitized in a high speed washer.