The Egg Quality Assurance™ (EQA®) program is an industry-wide initiative that certifies Canadian eggs are produced according to strict food safety and animal welfare standards.
By certifying local farms for standards of quality, food safety and animal welfare, the EQA® program ensures Canadians can get eggs they can trust, reflecting farmers’ commitments to rigorous egg production.
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All EQA® certified eggs have met strict standards of Egg Farmers of Canada’s Start Clean-Stay Clean® Program and Animal Care Program. No matter what type of egg you choose, the EQA® program ensures Canadians get fresh, local and high-quality eggs produced by Canadian farmers. EQA® certified eggs are easily identified by a certification mark which can be voluntarily displayed on egg cartons, restaurant menus and advertising materials.
THE EQA® CERTIFICATION MARK CONFIRMS EGGS ARE SOURCED FROM
PROGRAM PILLARS
Every EQA® certified egg meets strict standards of both the national Start Clean-Stay Clean® program and the Animal Care Program.
Start Clean-Stay Clean®
Ensuring your eggs are always safe and fresh.
The Start Clean-Stay Clean® program ensures safe, high-quality eggs. Developed with food safety experts, it undergoes regular reviews to align with scientific advancements and regulations. Farm inspections ensure eggs meet strict food safety standards, with best practices in egg collection and storage, facility hygiene, pest control, and record-keeping. The program is acknowledged by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency as being technically sound.
Animal Care Program
Ensuring hens are always well cared for.
Canadian egg farmers follow rigorous animal care standards to maintain their EQA® certification. The Animal Care Program enforces 100+ requirements to ensure that hens have a comfortable environment, a well-balanced and nutritious diet, fresh water, and clean surroundings, with regular inspections and audits to ensure accountability and consistent standards.
QUALITY PRINCIPLES
Canada has strict standards for egg safety and quality production.
The EQA® program helps maintain these standards through five key principles.
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Critical requirements
Based on science and developed with industry input.
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Verification
Farmers keep records to track program compliance.
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Third-party auditing
Professional inspections ensure standards are met.
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Continuous improvement
Standards are updated based on new research.
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Farmer commitment
Full participation from all regulated Canadian egg farmers.
EGG QUALITY ASSURANCE™ (EQA®) PROGRAM
Voice-over:
An egg. So simple, right? It can be a lot of things…
And Canadians love them. Each Canadian actually eats about 240 eggs each year. That’s a lot.
But what kind of care goes into each egg before it gets to grocery store shelves?
There’s quite a bit, so we’ll fill you in.
We created a new program to tell Canadians that before eggs get to them, they have to meet world-class quality standards. It’s called the EQA program. That stands for Egg Quality Assurance. It shows Canadians right on the carton that their eggs are produced according to strict food safety and animal welfare standards.
We’ll break it down for you. There are two pillars in the EQA program.
The first is the Animal Care Program. It makes sure every Canadian egg comes from a hen that’s well cared for. A trained field inspector visits each farm to ensure the hens have a comfortable environment, a well-balanced nutritious diet and fresh water.
The second is the Start Clean-Stay CleanTM program. That’s our food safety program. That means the storage, cleanliness, air quality, feed and record keeping of farms are regularly checked.
These world-class standards and practices have been in place on Canadian farms for more than 20 years.
This one easy to identify mark lets us maintain consumers’ trust.
By adding the symbol to cartons, we proudly show the commitment Canadian farmers put into delivering the best eggs possible. And with 94% of Canadians believing egg cartons should have a certification symbol, it just makes sense.
So the next time Canadians bite into their morning scramble, an afternoon snack or a delicious dinner, they can rest assured those are high-quality eggs.
Celebrate the quality of Canadian eggs with us. Learn how to get involved at eggquality.ca.
The EQA® program shows Canadians that their eggs, produced by local farmers, meet national standards for food safety and animal care. This ensures that every egg is high-quality and safe.
PURPOSE AND VISION
More than 96% of Canadians believe it is important for Canadian farms to be certified according to national animal care and food safety standards.¹ Additionally, 89% of Canadians feel that having a quality symbol provides reassurance regarding the eggs they purchase.
The EQA® certification mark provides peace of mind and reassures Canadians they can trust Canadian eggs. Every Canadian can trust and have confidence in the eggs they buy because of the EQA® program, knowing that it represents strict standards in egg production, regardless of the type of egg purchased.
¹ Egg Farmers of Canada (February, 2019). EFC EQA® research summary.
WHO IS INVOLVED?
The EQA® program includes everyone in the Canadian egg industry, from farmers to graders, processors, retailers and foodservice providers. They all work together to promote EQA® certified eggs to Canadians.
Canadian egg graders, processors, retailers and foodservice providers interested in displaying the EQA® certification mark can contact us to learn more.
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Every Canadian can trust the eggs they buy, knowing that regulated Canadian farms adhere to rigorous production standards. The EQA® certification mark helps them easily identify these eggs.
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The Egg Quality Assurance™ (EQA®) program was created to remind Canadians that every EQA® certified egg they buy comes from a Canadian farm meeting strict food safety and animal care standards.
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