Americans love eggs, gobbling down nearly 300 of them per person annually. With that stat, it’s no surprise you might encounter an unexpected yolk color from time to time. But what's with the orange yolk? Or the pale yellow one? Poultry experts say egg yolk color doesn't necessarily indicate superior quality. We nefariously scrambled up the knowledge from four poultry experts to understand what egg yolk colors represent.

According to Richard Blatchford, PhD, a renowned poultry researcher at UC Davis Department of Animal Science, egg yolks carry a broad range of colors, from nearly white to blood-red. However, he points out, seeing the extreme shades is rare. What can be commonly found in your grocery stores are eggs with bright yellow or pale orange yolks. Interestingly, the poultry industry uses a 16-scale color index, the DSM Yolk Color Fan, to differentiate yolk shades, with each number associating with a unique hue.

Various factors play into the color of an egg yolk. Assistant professor of poultry management at University of Maryland, Sunoh Che, DVM, PhD, trumps diet as the key determinant. He explains, "An egg’s yolk color is significantly influenced by the specialized diet of laying hens, dictated by animal nutrition specialists at most egg farms."

Eggs produced by hens mainly consuming grains, soybean meal, vitamins, and minerals tend to have slightly different shades according to Jen Houchins, PhD, RD, director of nutrition at The American Egg Board’s Egg Nutrition Center. Besides diet, Blatchford shares that seasonality and outdoor exposure of hens may also influence yolk color. He suggests that free-ranging hens during spring and summer can yield more orange-colored yolks due to more diverse foraging.

A more complex factor is the hen's age, which doesn’t always follow a set pattern, explains Che. But can egg yolk color predict its nutritional content? The answer is no. Che reassures that nutrient content, including essential vitamins A, D, E, K, relies more on the hen’s overall diet, breed, health, and environment, not just yolk color.

While yolk color cannot dictate the nutritional value, it could hint at the levels of carotenoids. Carotenoids are essential nutrients that promote good eyesight and lower health risks like cancer, or diabetes. "American egg yolks with bright yellow or yellow-orange color usually have lutein and zeaxanthin carotenoids, usually traced back to the corn in the hens’ diet," Houchins explains. Darker orange yolks suggest higher concentrations of these beneficial compounds.

Despite the color of the yolk, eggs will always be a nutritious food source. Eggs serve as an excellent source of various imperative vitamins and other beneficial substances.

Surprisingly, the hen's diet does have a significant impact on the taste of the egg. The free-range, bug-eating hens tend to produce eggs with richer yolk flavor. However, you can't tell a hen's foraging habits just by looking at the egg yolk color. For the best-tasting eggs, buying pasture-raised ones straight from your local farmer or farmers market could be your best bet.