To ensure the highest quality products, Ballyfree Eggs control all aspects of the process including control of hens from day old, management of feed and breed selection. A veterinary advisor is on hand at all times to monitor the health and welfare of the hens. A full time farm auditor carries out monthly audits to the Bord Bia EQAS and Ballyfree Eggs standards. The auditor also collects the monthly samples for monitoring of salmonella.
The packing centre also employs stringent quality control. Using the Bord Bia EQAS as the basis for the quality system, it has been developed over the years in conjunction with BRC and other customer standards to become a highly efficient management system. This management system incorporates all aspects of the business including food safety, health, welfare and safety, environment and ethical trading. The grading process is fully automated and includes automatic dirt & defect detection, crack detection and UV disinfection of the shells of the eggs.
Each egg is printed with the Flock registration code of the farm, the Bord Bia Logo and the Best Before date. Strict qualities checks are carried out throughout the process to monitor everything from print on the eggs and labels to the quality of the egg itself. The shell quality, albumen(white) quality and yolk colour is monitored as an indication of the quality of the egg.
